Tall Tales
by ficscribbler
Summary: Jo tells stories to an injured Zane to keep him focused while they wait for the rescue team; can he discern the difference between fact and fiction?
1. Part 1  Once Upon A Time

**Tall Tales, Part 1 Once Upon A Time**

Summary: _Jo tells stories to an injured Zane to keep him focused while they wait for the rescue team; can he discern the difference between fact and fiction? _

Disclaimer: _All rights to the concept and characters of the Eureka television series belong to its creators; no tangible profit is derived from the borrowing of the characters for this fan fiction. _

Author's Note: _Drafted before the July '11 airing of Season 4.5, and therefore not consistent with canon._

_*****Eureka***Eureka***Eureka***Eureka***Eureka*** Part I**_

"You couldn't just collect your data from somewhere safe, could you?" Jo groused through clenched teeth as she deftly laid the groundwork for a campfire, piling hastily-gathered twigs and small brush with the assurance and ease of someone well versed in survival techniques. "Keep pressure on that wound, Zane!" she snapped as she saw from her peripheral vision that the hand he had pressed to his leg was relaxing. Satisfied with his prompt response, she returned to her tirade. "No, you had to climb a cliff to install your idiotic sensors in the most remote locations you could find! Why does everything you do have to be so bloody dangerous?" she demanded irritably as she extracted the flint from one of her belt pouches and struck the spark to ignite the flames.

"It's not like I did this deliberately, Lupo," he said defensively as the fire crackled to life, doubling the light provided by Jo's flashlight. "None of my geo-scans showed how shallow the surface was here, and there wasn't even a hint that this crevice exists! I'm pretty sure the magnetic composition of the rock messed with the scanner, like it did with -"

"Oh shut up," she crossly cut him off. "I don't care _how_ it happened. What matters is _why_ it happened. You came up here alone. If you hadn't mentioned to one of the techs that you were going to place those stupid sensors of yours this morning, no one would've known where to look for you when you didn't show up at the test range this afternoon. You're an avid rock climber; you know better than to scale cliffs with an extra heavy pack when you don't have a spotter or a climbing partner. And to dump your emergency gear so you'd have enough space for your lab junk was particularly stupid – it was an invitation for disaster! You could have died down here with no one the wiser! Honestly, sometimes I swear you have a death wish!" With the campfire well underway, providing both increased light and the beginnings of heat for the chilly rock formation Zane had fallen into, Jo spared a moment to send a glare his direction as she sat back on her heels and dug into her backpack for her emergency medical kit.

Annoyed that he couldn't argue – she was right that he shouldn't have tried this alone, and he should have waited until he could find someone to accompany him, regardless of the delay in getting the sensor array online – he muttered resentfully, "Even if I did have a death wish, what would you care? It'd get me out of your hair, right?"

Her head snapped back as if he'd struck her, and her body tensed so sharply that he saw her knuckles whiten on the pouch she'd extracted from her pack. Her full lips tightened and a storm of emotions flashed through her dark eyes before she rasped back in a taut tone, "Don't be such an ass, Zane. I'd much prefer having you underfoot than need to call your mother and tell her that her boy is never coming home."

His mother! He glanced down at his injured calf and his gut clenched at the realization that if Jo hadn't found him so quickly… It'd been dusk already when she'd repelled down through the chimney to his side. He'd almost been done modifying his cell phone enough to overcome the interference from the magnetic rocks of this pit, but it would've been too late for a rescue party to find him tonight. At the rate he'd been losing blood, and at this elevation without either a fire or a blanket, even if he'd survived the drop in temperature once the sun set, he might've bled out before help could reach him in the morning. His mother would've been devastated to get a call telling her such a thing. He swallowed hard and met Jo's fierce gaze. "Point taken," he admitted gruffly.

The lovely brunette held his gaze for a long moment until she was satisfied, and then set aside the medical kit and unhooked the canteen from her belt. Her voice still crackled with tension as she added, "You also shouldn't have used all your water to wash the wound." She extended the canteen to him as she glared pointedly at the discarded water bottle tossed several feet away from him.

He accepted the container as she passed it over. "You already scolded me for that," he sulkily reminded her, but she merely gave him a scathing look. Yeah, she was probably going to remind him again, too. Her canteen was still nearly full since she hadn't allowed him to drink much the last time she gave it to him, so he took several long swallows before he handed it back. "Thanks." He watched as she set it aside and reached out around her to gather more of the debris that had gathered here over the years.

She fed it into the fire, building the flame a bit higher and stronger now that the blaze was established. Only then did she unzip the bag of medical supplies. She wasn't looking at him, but, as when he'd eased off holding the bloody wad of cloth to his calf, she somehow saw his quirked brow when she extracted a pair of small sealed tubes and what appeared to be a miniature torch. "That leg of yours is still bleeding even with the compress; it needs to be cleaned, medicated and cauterized," she said flatly.

He nodded slowly, recognizing the necessity. "You learn all this in the Rangers?" he asked. She glanced up with a lofted brow, and he elaborated, "Climbing, repelling, campfires, emergency first aid?"

Jo returned her gaze to the fire as she shrugged. "The Rangers fine-tuned the skills, but I learned from my brothers."

"Right; they're all military, too, aren't they?"

She rolled her eyes. "As if you didn't hack my file," she said flatly.

"Who, me?" he shot back, grinning broadly, then added more somberly, a bit hesitantly, "Seriously, though; military like you, right?"

She focused sharply on him. "You can't remember?" The first thing she'd noticed when she'd repelled far enough down for her torchlight to make Zane clearly visible at the bottom of the fissure was that his gaze was unfocused as he fumbled with his cell phone. Along with the gash in his calf and the general bruises and abrasions from falling thirty-some feet from the surface, he had several scalp lacerations and was sporting a hefty lump along the hairline over his left eyebrow. He'd startled to attention when she dropped the last eight feet to land in front of him, but his alertness was sporadic. She'd seen him blink and shake his head a couple times already, either attempting to retain or to regain mental clarity. "Zane?" she prompted, since he hadn't answered her.

He schooled his expression and met her hazel gaze, trying not to allow his own concern to show as he admitted reluctantly, "I'm a little fuzzy. But I'm pretty sure that's what I remember seeing." He was all too aware that he'd been drifting in and out before Jo showed up, and he'd hoped it was the shock of the fall, that his mental fog would clear up as time passed. But it wasn't getting any better. He didn't think mere shock could account for his mind wandering like this; it must be a concussion… maybe something worse. His fall into the hidden crevice had been pretty nasty, and by the areas of his head that hurt to touch he knew he'd cracked his head more than once.

It scared the daylights out of him. It was troublesome enough to know there was a temporary problem; even the slim possibility that his brain might be permanently affected was not good, not good at all.

Jo was undoubtedly right; this time he'd crossed the line. Placing his sensors had involved a fair amount of serious physical effort, between the hiking from location to location, the climbing, the actual labor of securing each sensor in its optimum site – and then there'd been the shocking tumble when the ground broke away beneath his feet, bouncing off the protruding jagged rocks as he fell into the unexpected crevice, the jarring landing in this pit, losing consciousness more than once in the hours since… This was bad. He hadn't thought twice about leaving behind "emergency" gear to accommodate his project equipment, or about bringing only a single water bottle. After all, there were plenty of streams he could use to refill the bottle – not that he'd bothered, too focused on his project to waste time when he'd thought he'd be done and back to GD in plenty of time – something he had no intention of telling Lupo. She'd probably tase him if he admitted that he'd had barely any water in his bottle before he fell down here, hardly enough to do more than rinse his bloody leg, definitely not enough to cleanse it properly let alone to slake his thirst.

If he'd waited until one of the lab assistants could join him instead of impatiently setting off on his own, if there'd been someone else with him, he'd never have left without the proper supplies, or ignored the safety guidelines. With backup along, at least he wouldn't have been trapped down here for this long, and the damage might have been minimized. Zane's stomach tightened as he noted the furrow in her brow; wondering if it was already worse than he realized, he kept his tone light as he asked, "Have I passed out since you dropped in?"

Fully aware of the priority Zane placed on avoiding anything that messed with his mind, Jo had a pretty good idea how much his current fuzziness must bother him. But she had no intention of easing his fears. Instead she said flatly, "You're fading in and out. Serves you right. Maybe you'll think twice next time before you jump headlong into something foolhardy without thinking through the ramifications."

Stung, he jeered, "Like you aren't an adrenalin junkie, too!"

Jo met his irate gaze with a quirked brow. "Yes, I enjoy invigorating activities, and sometimes there's an associated danger. But I don't behave recklessly or impulsively. For instance, I didn't come after you alone today, and I didn't leave behind the gear I might need once I found you. Since there were no notes about the order you intended to follow in installing your toys over this twenty mile radius, my team is spread out to check every one of the sites you'd marked on your project plans. It was just the luck of the draw that I was the one that came to this site – and it was sheer chance that I stumbled across the cave-in on the surface. As soon as I saw you down here, I called in these coordinates – _before_ I repelled down. Since the terrain here is too rough for them to reach us safely tonight, the rescue team will be here with first light. Completely by the book."

Zane glowered at her and growled, "Okay, so this time you played it straight. But I've seen you charge straight into danger plenty of times in the last couple years, Lupo, without the least thought of waiting for back up. If you weren't ten kinds of lucky, you'd have been dead or seriously injured a dozen times over."

She blinked, startled into stillness for a brief moment, before she shifted position so she could reach his leg. He eyed her suspiciously, waiting for either a defense of her "meet the problem head on" mentality, an argument that those were exactly the kind of situations she'd been trained to handle, or a denial that she'd disregarded safety protocols – all of which he'd heard her spout off before when she'd been taken to task by Director Fargo or Sheriff Carter for some deed of daring-do. But instead of defending herself, she let his statements pass without retort and focused her attention on his injury.

Puzzled at her uncharacteristic silence, he suddenly remembered that this was the new and improved version of Josefina Lupo. He frowned, trying to recall whether there'd been any instances of Lupo's insanely dangerous heroics in response to one of GD's emergency situations since Founder's Day. He couldn't be positive, since his memory was currently playing hide and seek with him. But now that the topic had come to mind, he didn't think there'd been any recent daredevil reactions from the Enforcer – which meant this was another change he should add to his list. What had his latest theory been about Lupo and the others who'd subtly and not-so-subtly altered in the last few months? Alternate universe? Parallel universe? Wormholes? Changed timeline? And there was something niggling at the back of his mind, something important… Something he couldn't recall at the moment but that he was almost positive leant weight to one of his hypotheses…

He clenched his jaw as he realized the status of his various speculations was yet another item that he couldn't recall with any clarity. He cursed internally at this sign that his brain was misfiring, and then cursed aloud as a searing pain jerked his attention back to Lupo and his leg. She'd moved his hand and the compress, grounded his leg via a knee resting solidly on his ankle, and squeezed a stream of the cleansing agent from one end to the other of the open six inch gash on the inside of his calf. It hurt like the devil as the gel fizzed into action. Teeth gritted, he said, "You'd think GD could come up with an analgesic to temper that!"

Jo glanced up sympathetically. "I asked Allison about it once; she said they deliberately didn't add a numbing agent because pain is an injury factor that needs to be monitored. But this second salve will help a little," she held up the other tube. "This one has regenerative agents. We just have to wait about ninety seconds for the cleanser to finish."

He frowned at her, perplexed, as she refocused on monitoring his injury. One thing he had no trouble remembering was the way Lupo used to sneer at him and tell him to "Man up, Donovan!" during occasions when either his lab mishaps or the security team take-downs had caused an injury. The empathy she was currently displaying was yet another reminder that this Lupo was different. It nagged at him that he couldn't quite pull all the details together into something that added up to either common sense or scientific sense.

As soon as the first gel finished sizzling away whatever germs had occupied the wound, Jo uncapped the next tube and applied a second stream of gelatinous material. As she'd predicted, this one was cool and soothing. He heaved a sigh of relief, which prompted a half smile from the woman leaning over him. The respite from pain ended all too soon, though. He watched her switch on the pencil-sized med-laser.

"This is going to sting, but not as much as the sanitizer," she told him matter-of-factly, but her dark eyes still held more concern than he'd witnessed in the entire first two years he'd known her.

As much for her sake as his, Zane summoned a smirk and quipped, "I should've known you'd find a way to tase me before this day ended,", but it was a half-hearted attempt at best, and it actually caused her concern to deepen. He wished he could read her mind as her eyes searched his face once more, her expression unreadable, before she focused on his leg again. He braced himself as she carefully pressed his torn skin back together over the medication and began to fuse it with the laser, bit by bit, slow and steady, until the entire six inches of skin was cauterized. He managed not to jerk away, but only just barely. Each time she moved to the next segment, the whole process was repeated; by the time Jo finished he was panting and shaking with the effort of holding still.

She shifted her knee off his ankle, set aside the tool and, without a word, offered him the water again.

He noticed that there was a tremor in the hand extending the canteen, and was taken aback to see that beads of sweat had formed on her face. As he gulped the refreshing liquid he saw that her hands, steady while she was treating him with the high tech gadget, were trembling now that she was almost finished. She gave no sign of knowing that he watched closely while she first opened antiseptic wipes and cleaned away the blood from his skin and then extracted a knife from her belt to trim down a self-adhering bandage, which she pressed gently over the newly-sealed skin before she finally sat back on her heels again and let out a tremulous breath. "There. I think that should suffice until we can get you down to Allison." She straightened the torn, bloodied denim into place over the sterile gauze and shifted away from him.

Zane thoughtfully stared at her as she gathered the remnant of the medical supplies and repacked them into the pouch, deftly sliding it back into its place in her backpack before she wiped her wrist across her moist brow and rolled her tensed shoulders to ease the strain caused by her tight self-control as she'd worked over him. "Hungry?" she asked, finally looking up. Catching the intensity of his gaze, she froze. "What?"

"I don't suppose you'd care to answer a few questions about why looking after my leg just now seemed like it hurt you almost as much as it hurt me?"

She stared at him for moment, and he thought she was blushing – of all things! – although it was difficult to tell for certain in the flickering firelight. Then she swallowed and, without breaking his gaze, she repeated flatly, "Hungry?"

Nope. She wasn't going to answer any questions. Same old same old. At least he remembered that much. He waited a beat, long enough so she'd know he was going to ask again at some point, and then nodded. "Yeah. I'm hungry."

Jo reached into her pack again and extracted the container of rations, wondering anew how she'd gotten herself into this. When she'd organized the search pattern, she'd chosen the furthest location as her designated search area; it seemed logical that he'd tackle this one first and work his way back toward GD since he'd planned to be at the test range this afternoon. Instead, according to the com call-ins from her team, she now knew that Zane had planted almost all the other beacons before climbing up here. Why he'd done it this way was beyond her, and there was no way she could ask, since he was far too good at putting two and two together; he was bound to realize she'd tried to avoid him by choosing the location she'd expected him to visit first. Honestly, with the way her luck had been running these last few months, she should've known not to trust her instinct on this. Now she was stuck with him until her crew could get here tomorrow to haul him to safety.

Not that she couldn't rig a pulley system to lift him from this crevice to the surface, now that she knew the extent of his injuries and had done the triage… but given the wind and the exposed terrain up there – and the fact that a tent was the one thing she hadn't packed – he'd be better off down here where the stony walls of the pit could reflect the light and heat back onto them. There was plenty of debris to keep the fire going all night, and if they ran shy she could always climb out long enough to forage for more firewood.

The biggest problem she could foresee was that she'd have no respite from conversing with him. Before she'd realized he probably had a concussion, she'd hoped that after applying first aid she could just tell him to get some rest and pretend to fall asleep herself in order to avoid interaction. But since he had a head injury, she'd have to wake him frequently to make sure he was still coherent – not a pleasant prospect, considering how irritable the other Zane had been at being awakened at odd intervals. Maybe it would be simpler to keep him awake. He'd be less resistant to answering her, and she needed him to be willing to respond so she could properly evaluate his condition.

Her stomach clenched and she had to fight back sudden panic at the thought that he might become unresponsive; the implications were far too frightening. Yeah, not allowing him to sleep was the only way to go. It would minimize the risk of him slipping away. She'd have to keep him as alert as possible, keep that incredibly brilliant brain of his as active as possible… and at the same time hope he was off his game enough that she could avoid the conversation she knew he wanted to have with her. Jo once again cursed the hallucinations that had prompted her to toss that incriminating ring at him. Talking to Zane all night was going to be like making her way through a minefield, fraught with perils at every step.

"Is there any other choice available than military k-rations?"

She blinked and realized she'd given him her preferred protein instead of one of the packages he was more likely to favor. "That's jerky, not k-rations," she corrected. "But yeah, I have a few pouches of trail mix." She tossed him three bags, noting approvingly that he caught them without any problem; motor coordination was intact. That was good.

Zane passed her the unlabeled foil pack he'd partially opened. "You really eat that stuff?"

She shrugged. "It's nourishment, and it's easy to carry." She bit off a piece and tucked the rest into her upper vest pocket, absently chewing at her mouthful to soften it up while she studied her companion. His color looked good, and he wasn't having any problem keeping down the water he'd consumed, or scarfing down the trail mix. But despite the warmth emanating from the campfire he was still shivering. His jacket wasn't heavy enough for this elevation, especially considering the blood he'd lost.

She dug into her pack again and withdrew a four-by-six inch compressed bundle that, when opened, proved to be GD's latest microfiber ground sheet and blanket. She'd already identified a relatively level spot that would receive steady warmth from the fire through the night. She carefully brushed clear the twigs, loose rocks and leaves, separating the twigs and leaves for the fire, and then spread the ground sheet. Then she twisted toward Zane. "Hey, what do you say we move you over here, away from all that bloody ground."

Unfortunately, his gaze had gone a bit unfocused again and he didn't appear to hear her; he just slumped there trembling and staring blankly into the small fire. Frowning, Jo crossed to his side, knelt beside him and tugged at his arm; he blinked groggily, still not seeming aware of his surroundings… but at least he responded as she physically prodded him.

He was eerily compliant, following her lead when she helped him up and supported him as he stumbled the eight feet around the fire to his new location. There wasn't a lot of head room, barely enough for Jo to stand at her full height, but since he had to lean heavily on her, she managed to maneuver him without smacking his head into the rocky 'ceiling' where the chimney widened at its bottom. Given his unsteady gait, she was also thankful they crossed the small distance without him tripping on the uneven 'floor'. She eased him down on the ground sheet and paused to watch him in concern as he sat exactly where she'd positioned him, once again staring absently at the fire, still shivering.

Okay, this was becoming seriously worrisome. "Zane. ZANE!" she repeated when he didn't react. It took a third time calling his name, combined with a sharp push on his shoulder before he snapped into focus.

He blinked and stared up at her, surprised to find her looking down at him. "What?"

"You zoned out on me again."

Blast! That wasn't good. His brow furrowed and he sat up straighter, finally taking in his changed position. Troubled that he didn't remember moving, he compressed his lips and met her concerned gaze. "Sorry, JoJo."

A smile curved her lips upward a little and her expression softened. "S'okay. Just don't make a habit of it. Eat the rest of your trail mix, Zane." She motioned to the third pack that was still clutched in his hand, and waited until he ripped it open before she leaned down, gathered up the blanket, draped it over his shoulders and fastened the Velcro strap to keep it in place. She tucked it around him before she stepped over his extended legs and sat down between him and her pack. Retrieving her jerky and taking another bite, she waited until she could chew it before she said, "I think you may have a concussion."

He nodded, with the slow movement of a man whose head was aching. He should be more concerned about that, but somehow it wasn't as troublesome now that Jo was here looking out for him. No, wait – shouldn't he be more worried instead of less worried that he wasn't in top shape for dealing with the Enforcer? Yeah, he ought to be braced for trouble, but his brain wasn't cooperating. Okay, that proved it; there was definitely something wrong with his thought processes. He could only hope it was nothing more than a concussion. "Yeah, I think you're right."

Another faint smile crossed her lips. "Don't worry, I won't rub it in." At his blank look, she added patiently, "About being right, I mean. I won't rub it in."

He stared at her a moment, blinking as it sunk in that her lovely lips were turned upward a tad; she was actually teasing him. He smiled back. "Thanks."

"So… standard procedure for concussions is to make sure the patient stays alert. The easiest way to check your responsiveness is to have you answer questions."

"No argument there," he agreed, but stiffened as he wondered whether she was going to try to use his sluggishness to interrogate him about something she thought he'd done wrong. He couldn't remember anything recent, though… not that meant anything, considering his condition. He cursed internally, wishing desperately that everything wasn't so cloudy. He scowled at the crackling flames, scolding himself for letting his thoughts drift again. Lupo was too good at her job, too wily to pass up a situation where he wasn't at the top of his game; she'd find something to use against him if he wasn't careful. What could she be angling for here?

Aware of his suspicion and its most likely cause, she ignored the knot that formed in her stomach at yet another bit of evidence confirming their enmity in this timeline. There was nothing she could do about the past; all she could do was move forward. Besides, he was right that she had an ulterior motive for what she was about to suggest… but it wasn't something that might hurt him. If this worked, she could kill two birds with one stone; tend to Zane and, if she was lucky, provide some necessary Intel for her friends. She chose her words carefully in an effort to pique his interest without hinting at any subtext. "Good. So, I have an idea, something to help you focus, and at the same time, to test whether you're lucid." She passed him her canteen again as he finished chewing and swallowed his latest mouthful of peanuts and granola. "You up for a challenge, Donovan?"

He uncapped the canteen and took a sip. It was potentially hazardous in his current state of mind, but he was always interested in a challenge from his favorite nemesis. "What do you have in mind, Lupo?"

"I'll tell you stories. You have to tell me whether they're real, or just tall tales." Would he go for it?


	2. Part 2 Fireside Stories

**Tall Tales – Part 2 Fireside Stories**

Disclaimer and Author Note: _See Part 1  
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_*****Eureka***Eureka***Eureka***Eureka***Eureka*** Part II**_

The idea of Josefina Lupo telling him stories all night was … oddly endearing. Moreover, he couldn't see any danger in it. Maybe he'd misjudged her; that had been happening a lot lately… at least, well, hadn't it? Uncomfortably reminded that his current fuzziness made it impossible to know for sure, Zane ate another handful of trail mix and chose to consider her proposition instead of his predicament.

Stories. His earliest memories were of curling on his grandmother's lap while she read him fairytales – in fact, that's how he'd learned to read. Of course they'd progressed to reading classics by the time he was four, with Zane doing the reading. He'd always loved their story time, especially when it was adventure authors like Stevenson, Verne, or Tolkien. In fact, their reading had often spurred his interest in math and science. His first two experiments had been calculations and designs to see if he could recreate either Verne's _Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea_ or _From the Earth to the Moon_. He'd been forced to give up the underwater experiments because the bathtub had definitely not been big enough, and he'd been banned from the recreation center pool all summer after his model submarine shorted out and zinged a couple dozen swimmers. But he'd borrowed library books, learned from his mistakes, and it had been his kindergarten show-and-tell rocket blasting through the classroom ceiling that brought him to the attention of educational authorities.

He hadn't thought about fairy tales, folk tales or tall tales in years. He doubted whether labeling Jo's stories as tall tales or truth would be much of a challenge, even foggy-minded… but it could be fun. Besides, it'd be the perfect excuse to drink in the brunette's beauty to his heart's content. No way could he turn down something that gave him a good reason to stare at the delectable Josefina Lupo. She'd expect him to watch her closely while he listened and decided whether she was trying to fake him out, right? He'd be able to admire her all night without her tasing him for ogling her. This could be fun. "What do I win when I get the right answers?" he smirked with a waggle of his brows.

Jo rolled her eyes at his suggestive tone. "How about I _don't_ tase you?"

He made a face and grinned, "Party pooper." Yet he couldn't help wondering if this version of Lupo would actually turn a taser on him. It wasn't that he didn't think she was capable of it. Whichever Lupo she was, she was the Enforcer, the ultimate officer of the law. But where the previous Lupo had seized every slight reason to tase him or toss him into jail, he believed that this Jo would only do so if and when it was genuinely warranted. Even the time she'd come after him while under the influence of Parrish's RSS device, she'd only restrained him instead of zapping him. Funny, that detail he recalled with perfect clarity – weird funny, not amusing funny, considering he'd been so out of control. Maybe it was another symptom of his current condition? Maybe -

Zane pulled his wandering mind back into focus again. No drifting. Lupo. Taser. But no, that wasn't right: he had no fear about whether she would penalize him if he couldn't guess whether her stories were true or make-believe. She was merely offering a palatable method of verifying his mental state. Lupo was looking after him, though whether out of duty or… something more… he had no way of knowing. It was the 'something more' that he needed to watch out for, stay alert and on his game.

"Yup, party pooper. That's me," she agreed dryly, continuing to watch him as she planned her strategy. Henry, Fargo and Allison had searched Eureka's archives over the last stressful months to see how the occurrences here matched those they'd experienced in their original timeline. Jo could use some of the things they'd discovered to check the accuracy of Zane's memory… and maybe figure out where her relationship with him had gone wrong here. She could mix in some stories from her previous timeline, occurrences they'd not found any record of in this new timeline, and this Zane would think she was making things up to test him. If she did this right, he'd have no idea what he was really telling her… but only if she did it right. One wrongly-chosen phrase or selection of story, and the genius might catch on, loopy or not.

Zane made a show of wriggling around as if getting comfortable, and tugged the blanket closer about his shoulders. "Okay, go ahead. Let's see how good a storyteller you are, JoJo," he smirked, and waited expectantly.

"Alright. I'll give you fair warning that the names have been changed to protect both the guilty and the innocent," she said with a twinkle in her tawny eyes.

"Duly noted," he chuckled, intrigued anew. That didn't sound like she planned to use the kind of stories he'd instantly assumed she would tell him. Tall tales? What did she intend to use if not well-known childhood stories?

"These stories take place in a fictional town named Wahoo," she drawled and, ignoring his snort of laughter, started into her first tale.

Much to Zane's delight, Jo's narrations were based on Eureka-type misadventures. They were widely varied, and proved to be intellectually stimulating as well as entertaining. Moreover, she was amazingly good at not using the real names of her story characters, either the guilty or the innocent, stoically sticking with descriptive monikers for the good guys and the miscreants – really, who else could Sheriff Everyman be than Carter? Zane had little to no trouble associating Eureka citizens' names with the characters, but as amusing as that was, it was far more intriguing to calculate the probable validity of each scenario she presented, based on scientific viability and his familiarity with the town's populace.

Over the next hours he identified as "real" stories about a wife cloned by a spurned and lonely husband ("it's theoretically and technologically viable"), purple flowers that drugged an entire population ("airborne spores are definitely dangerous"), a smart house that kidnapped Wahoo's leading citizens to resolve personal differences that threatened to tear apart the community ("after all, if she can slip Deputy Andy an emo download, she's capable of anything"), a Consortium manipulating scientists to control their discoveries ("I've always said Big Brother was watching"), a disaster-prone young geek who had to be killed to free him when he was trapped in a MACAA - Multi-Application Combat Armor Alternative ("I can definitely see you as the sharpshooter, Lupo"), and a giant magnet that pulled space junk from orbit into the earth's atmosphere ("I was fiddling with an idea like that to clean up all the trash we've left up there!"), a GD lockdown over a false airborne toxin leak, where the geeky guy and the deputy's boyfriend had to hack into GD's security to trick the system into thinking rescuers were dead so they could get past the automated defenses to save trapped people ("yeah, that's entirely possible; every system has a backdoor if you know where to look"), a Tesla school project miscalculation that created a new sun ("Whoa! I can so see that! Some lucky dude must've had a blast countering that!").

He scorned stories about the local sheriff's daughter as a juvenile delinquent ("Miss Goody Two Shoes? No way!"), a missile launched at the moon but knocked off trajectory by Sheriff Everyman ramming the missile launcher with his cruiser ("that's way too implausible to swallow"), a formula that enabled humans to move at super-speed ("a group of real life superheroes; really, Lupo? You expect me to buy that one?"), Wahoo's deputy sheriff falling for a guy who was secretly an android ("with the way you reacted when Deputy Andy had that crush on you? Nope, can't see it."), the possibility of spontaneous combustion ("Fun fodder for those believe-it-or-not shows, but it can't happen."), hijacked behavioral satellite broadcasts that inspired conspiracy theories about crop circles and an alien invasion ("Sounds like a crazy plot for a television episode."), everyone in Wahoo sharing the same dreams ("There are too many variables that would have be in play for something like that to work, and the odds against it are astronomical"), and one scientist secretly cryogenically-freezing another because they both loved the same woman ("way too corny, JoJo"), a time loop on the wedding day of GD's Director and the DOD liaison that ended in the director being dematerialized ("Everyone knows Stark died in a white list project gone wrong, but even a white list project wouldn't mess with time; the protocols are killer!"), a contagion-spreading secret facility uncovered by the machinations of a woman who didn't age, with the crisis averted by the deputy's boyfriend finishing an antidote bomb begun by long-dead scientists ("there's so many variables in that story that it'd be impossible, besides which not even Mansfield could hush up something like that"), the deputy's DNA being stolen by Geeky Guy's wanna-be-girlfriend so she could copy the deputy's appearance to get the geek's attention ("DNA re-sequencing! Possible, but – and no offense here, JoJo – hot as you are, if someone wanted a geek's attention, they'd clone another scientist instead of someone like you").

He dozed off at one point, and then only briefly as far as he could tell since Jo was still talking when he blinked to awareness again, but she was at the resolution of a situation where a signal from space had taken over sleeping teenager's minds. "Wait, go back," he'd urged, since he'd clearly missed the details about how the signal had turned into a decades-old returning GD experiment.

Jo shook her head. "You snooze, you lose, Donovan," she'd drawled, and that was the last time he allowed himself to nod off despite his increasingly heavy limbs and deepening desire for sleep.

Fortunately, she was a good story teller with a droll sense of humor, which was very helpful in holding his attention and helping him fight his exhaustion. She captured the quirks of the characters, making the personalities clear as day, and although she changed names, the pictures she painted of the people in her stories rang true – especially to those in her close circle of friends. She was a little freehanded with the assignment of duties in her Wahoo version of GD, but these people in her stories fit with the ones he'd been getting to know more personally since Founder's Day, the ones that seemed to know him and his skills better than anyone should. Zane was impressed with her ability to insert her friends' characteristics into the stories so well that he could see the players interacting as events unfolded, even when she cast them into different careers.

It hadn't taken long to connect Fargo with Jo's story version of the geeky accident-prone assistant to the ego-maniacal genius who'd been the original Director when Zane first arrived in Eureka. Jo's descriptions of the assistant fit like a glove with the "turning over a new leaf" director that Dr. Fontana had described as apologizing to her over that White List project fiasco on Founder's Day. But Jo's stories implied that Stark had been succeeded by Dr Blake instead of Fargo; the fanciful twist fit into the subplots Jo wove throughout her stories, even though there was no way the General would've appointed a director that had a family that might distract them from making GD the priority in their life. Zane decided he'd have admired and enjoyed developing working relationships, maybe even friendships, with the core group of Wahoo's eccentric inhabitants in Jo's narratives.

He couldn't help being a little jealous of the tight knit group in her stories. He'd longed for exactly that sense of community throughout his life, but it had always eluded him. He might have found it in Wahoo, surrounded by the acceptance, respect, and encouragement of people like Jo's Darth Director, Geeky Guy, the mayor, Mama Doc, and Sheriff Everyman. Zane liked these people in her tales much more than the real people he'd dealt with, and he enjoyed immersing himself in the aura of friendship Jo wove into her stories of them.

Surprisingly, Jo gave him enough technical detail about these crazy scenarios that he found himself fascinated with piecing together the probable science behind each event, mentally racing to ascertain scientific probability before she finished a tale so he could decide whether to accept the anecdote, or whether to write it off as an attempt to fool him. She didn't always use the right technical terms, but she had a good enough grasp of details that he was able to identify the scientific principles involved in each story, which was impressive in and of itself.

Occasionally she slipped in an adventure he remembered, but there were always things she left out or extra details that she added into such narrations. He pointed out these inconsistencies so she'd know he was still on top of his game. For instance, when she retold the story of Zane's arrival in Eureka, she included the whole "do you feel dumb, how can you tell" incident for which he'd been zapped by the duo of lawmen, his tricking her into giving him the information he needed to break out of the jail, Carter tracking him down and hauling him back, and even his reluctantly-provided help to solve the imminent crisis – but she left out the lingerie he'd given her. "Hey," he smirked, "I've always wondered if you kept that lingerie."

He wasn't at all surprised when Jo rolled her eyes and moved on to the next story without answering. Interestingly, a tell-tale blush tinted her olive skin even in the firelight. Hmm… she'd kept them? He filed that thought away for further contemplation at a later date.

Another obvious story was the one about Sheriff Everyman becoming irresistible to Eureka's women; maybe she'd forgotten that Zane was already living in – Wahoo – when that happened, so he knew Jo didn't have a boyfriend at that time and she was making it up about having a steady guy that hadn't liked it that she'd locked lips with her boss. "Of course," he'd added quickly when he saw something akin to pain flicker in her expression, "if you'd had a boyfriend, I'm sure the guy wouldn't have liked it any. No red-blooded guy likes to see his smokin' hot girlfriend kissing some other dude."

The "smokin' hot" part earned him a tiny upturn of her lips, instead of the irritated smack he'd been half-braced to receive. She'd returned to her storytelling without even a reprimand.

Another of her tales involved the biosphere project deep under GD where the first documented case of de-evolution had taken place. He'd cut her off immediately after she sent Sheriff Everyman down into the biosphere. "Come on, Jo, that's no challenge! Everyone knew about that one!" he'd laughed. To prove it when she quirked a brow, he'd elaborated, "Director Stark had me work with him to provide a delivery system for the cure. It wasn't long after you became head of GD Security, and when Stark told you to give me the weapon to modify for the antidote you stood over my shoulder the whole time to make sure I didn't booby-trap your precious gun."

"Right. Good to know you're still on the ball," she'd said. "Moving on…"

Even less of a challenge had been the story about the Arctic ice core sample that infected its caretakers. "Really, Jo; you think I wouldn't remember _that?_ I was cold for weeks afterward!"

She'd shrugged a bit sheepishly, and gone on to her next selection.

And somewhere in the midst of all the other stories, she tossed in, "Okay, how about this one, then: Einstein's archived Bridge Device was activated and created a link through time with the original device operating in 1947. A solar flare interacted with the uplinks of cell phones being used at that instant and sent the handful of users back in time. Fortunately, one of the time travelers was the mayor, and together with Einstein's partner they figured out what happened and how to correct it. While evading the military that thought they were spies, the group was able to use the Camp Wahoo satellite dish to draw enough energy from 1947's solar flares to return to the present. But Einstein's partner, anxious to see the future, hitched a ride and changed the timeline. The Bridge Device was fried and they couldn't fix it, so they lived out their lives in a changed future. Truth or tall tale, Zane?"

"Tall tale," he answered promptly. "Easy one. They didn't even have satellites in orbit back in 1947, let alone a satellite dish powerful enough to channel the power of a solar flare."

Jo kept telling him stories all night long, through the dawn light that filtered down into the fissure and the advent of the brighter beams of sunshine after the sunrise, and right up until three more ropes dropped down the crevice to hang beside Jo's. Almost immediately, three of her black-clad team repelled into the narrow space, and in short order they were hooking Zane into a harness and, working in smooth tandem with the security personnel on the surface, hoisting him up into the fresh morning air.

Before his eyes had adjusted to the bright light, they'd strapped him into a rescue basket and were lowering him down the cliff face he'd scaled yesterday. Per Chief Lupo's orders – apparently issued last night before she'd descended into his crevice – there was a GD medic waiting at the bottom to check his injuries, hook up an IV, and ride back in the chopper with him. Dr. Blake was ready and waiting at GD's main infirmary to check him over as the orderlies moved him from the stretcher to an exam bed in a fully-equipped med bay.

"I know you must be tired; I'll try to be brief so you can get some sleep," she said with a reassuring smile and a pat to his shoulder. And she was true to her word, asking succinct questions and performing an efficient examination with a speed that he was grateful for even in his groggy state. He was pretty sure he'd never appreciated the advanced technology and knowledge of GD as much as he did when Allison used a hand scanner to confirm that there were no cracked skull or bone fragments, no swelling of his brain, nothing to indicate any reason for concern about long-term damage. "Jo, you checked his status throughout the night?"

He turned his head and was surprised to see her leaning against the wall just inside the main door. When had she arrived? He was fairly certain she hadn't ridden down in the chopper. Had he lost track of time? Had he zoned out again without realizing it? She had already changed from the jumpsuit and climbing gear to one of her usual power suits. Gone was his storytelling companion with the stray strands of hair slipping from her ponytail; in her place was the slick and professional Enforcer.

Jo straightened up but didn't step any nearer. "Yeah. He was a little sluggish some of the time, but he was lucid and alert enough to formulate rational scientific theories. He's had plenty of water and a half dozen snack packs of trail mix. You'll want to re-open his leg to clean out any infection, but I don't think there was any serious muscular or arterial damage."

"Good job, Jo," Allison nodded and glanced down at Zane. "Lucky for you that you were found by someone who has so much field experience," she said with a smile.

Well, there was something he'd never considered before. He stared across the room at Lupo again and nodded slowly as he wondered exactly how many other times she'd had to practice field medicine before she'd left the Rangers and come to Eureka. She'd certainly taken good care of him. "Yeah. Lucky."

Stewart, the captain of Jo's second shift security team, marched through the medical lab door with Zane's backpack in hand. He passed it to Jo with a few quiet words. She nodded and dismissed him, then, as the officer left, Jo strolled toward the med bay bed where Zane lay.

She hung his pack off one of the raised side rails. "Stewart's team used your map to place the last two sensors at the coordinates you had marked. Fargo instructed Parrish to monitor the results himself, so your project will be on track when Allison says you can return to work. Your data pad is in there if you want to monitor its progress after you get some sleep." She gestured to the rucksack.

Zane stared up at her, stunned.

"What?" she frowned.

Cautiously he asked, "The Director's not going to give the project to someone else?"

A deeper crease formed between her dark brows. "Allison ruled out any major injuries, Zane. You're not going to be out of commission for long. Why would someone else take over your project?"

As surprised by her question as she'd been by his, he grimaced. "Because that's what happens when I screw up; I get restricted from projects, cuffed, tased, incarcerated, or some combination thereof. You should know; you're usually the one that zaps me." For a second there she looked stricken, before her expression closed off. He frowned.

Allison rested a comforting hand on his shoulder, drawing his attention. "It was just an accident, Zane. It could have happened to anyone. Yes," she gave Jo an admonishing look as the younger woman started to say something, "It was careless to go up there alone." Her calm acknowledgment prompted a grim nod of agreement and a glare down at Zane from Jo before Allison, with a twinkle in her dark eyes, finished, "But while being careless may warrant a scold, it doesn't merit a disciplinary step like taking away your project."

Apparently Jo had no argument with that, either, because she merely nodded when he looked at her for confirmation that he wasn't in trouble this time.

His brow creased; yeah, he had the vague impression that he'd experienced this weird flip from normal to bizarre before. Either he was dreaming this, or the line between fact and fiction was seriously blurred these days. Completely bemused, Zane looked back and forth between the two of them, and then shook his head, muttering "I'm in the Twilight Zone."

The doctor chuckled. "I used to love that show. Great fodder for scientific conjecture. I'm going to have the nurse apply a topical numbing agent to your leg. It'll take effect in three to five minutes, and then we'll open the wound and make certain everything's as it should be. All you need to do is relax. You can even go to sleep; you won't feel a thing during the examination." She smiled gently down at him and patted his shoulder again before she turned away to issue quiet instructions to the nurse standing by.

He looked up at Jo, who was still standing nearby, her arms folded across her chest as she watched the medical personnel organizing his care. It looked like she planned to stay. Odd, but nice.

Worn out by the combination of his injuries and lack of sleep, and reassured both by Dr. Blake's comforting presence and the knowledge that Jo was still looking out for him, Zane relaxed and drifted off before they'd even assembled the surgical tools.


	3. Part 3 Fact or Fiction

**Tall Tales Part 3 – Fact or Fiction**

Disclaimer & Author Note: _See Part 1_

_*****Eureka***Eureka***Eureka***Eureka***Eureka*** Part III**_

When he thought back on it later, the first thing Zane remembered was slowly waking from a deep slumber, barely aware of muted voices and scattered bits of conversation.

"How is he?" "He's going to be fine…" That was the Sheriff and Dr. Blake. He wondered idly who they were talking about, and drifted back to sleep.

And then, the next time he became conscious of what was happening around him: "… confirmed a lot of differences, but also quite a few similarities." That was Carter again, speaking so softly that Zane almost couldn't hear him. "Henry said we should have much more success in analyzing the changes now that we can add the information Zane gave you. The Rangers must've hated to lose you, Jo; you have a real talent for gathering intelligence. I can't believe you got that much Intel just by using the truth. You took a big risk, though."

_The truth? What truth? What's he talking about? I must need more sleep._ It would have been easy to tune the man out and doze off again, but the next voice he heard caught his attention.

"Yeah," Jo agreed dryly, also as quietly as if she were in a sickroom. "It was risky. But Grace hasn't been here long enough to give us all the answers we needed, and let's face it: Zane's hacked his way through so many security walls that he knows more about what goes on here than my entire Security staff put together. Besides, given that I don't have a prayer of keeping up with his intelligence, the only way I could tell if he was lucid was to stick with stuff I knew was true – or at least, stuff I thought was true until Zane confirmed otherwise."

"I wish we could write it up and keep it like Cliff Notes," Carter again, but sounding a little agitated. "Even after this long, I'm always worried about missing something that I ought to know, or saying something that gives us away."

_Ought to know? Gives what away? And what did Jo mean about knowing something was true until I said otherwise? Are they talking in some kind of code?_ Zane kept his eyes closed; he'd picked up useful information before merely by pretending he was still sound asleep on the surprisingly-comfortable jail cell cot. No need to let them know he was awake yet. _What am I in for this time_, he wondered absently as he continued to focus on their conversation.

"Actually, I don't think you need to worry so much about that, Jack," Jo answered, still speaking quietly although from a little further away – she was probably pacing back and forth, as he'd often seen her do while working something out. "Fargo says that statistically speaking, every day that passes decreases the odds that we'll say or do something that gives us away, because the past has less and less impact on current events the further we get from when it happened."

_When "it" happened? When what happened?_ _ Wait – are they talking about – they must be! This has to be about what Lupo won't discuss! _Zane was abruptly more alert, but deliberately held still. Everything flooded back to him; the cause of his various aches and pains, Jo finding him and staying with him until he could be moved, the reason he was waking up in an antiseptic-smelling place instead of a jail cell as he'd first assumed when he'd awakened in a bed other than his own – he was at GD, and no one knew he was awake yet. If they were near enough for him to hear their private conversation, then they were near enough that any unwary movement might betray him – Of course! The other side of the privacy screen! If he was very quiet and very, _very _lucky, he might be able to piece together what was going on around here while everyone thought he was still out.

"It doesn't mean we can relax our vigilance," Jo had continued, "But as long as Grant keeps his head down and Fargo is able to keep tabs on Beverly, we can definitely keep our trip under the radar."

Grant? Oh right. He'd meant to research that guy, but he'd been sidetracked when the Director asked him to head up GD's newest lab. Outfitting the Commercial Applications lab and building his team had kept him too busy to pursue – then it clicked. _Duped! Getting my own lab was a distraction! I should have seen it! Obviously this Grant guy is key to whatever happened_. _But Beverly?_ The only Beverly he knew of was Beverly Barlowe, the town shrink who'd vanished for a sabbatical under the rumor that she'd needed a long break from Eureka's crazy geniuses to preserve her own mental health; how could she fit into the mystery? And what trip was Jo talking about? Carter made occasional out-of-town trips to see Zoe or for legal reasons, but the two of them hadn't gone anywhere together. Although – _Is she referring to whatever happened as a "trip"? That has to be it._

"Jo, don't jinx us by saying stuff like that out loud," Carter hissed, clearly not reassured. "Besides, it's all very well for me and Allison, and for Henry and Grace, and even for Fargo now that he's met that whirling dervish from Warehouse 13, but things aren't going so well for you." Jo started to say something and he cut her off. "Yeah, yeah, you've told me a hundred times that you're fine, but I know you better than that. You're struggling, and it's no wonder!"

Carter didn't fret without cause, and his concern set off instant anxiety in his eavesdropping listener. Zane almost betrayed himself with a surge in his pulse that set off the heart monitor. Luckily, he'd learned long ago how to regulate his heart rate. It had been an essential skill for many of his plans to elude monitoring or capture before he'd come to Eureka, so he reacted instinctively to control his heart rate; he was quick enough that the brief blip didn't attract anyone else's notice. Good. He needed all the information he could get about Jo, and a flurry of medical activity would bring that conversation to an immediate end.

"Carter!" Jo hissed, "This is not the time or place to discuss this!"

"Come on, Jo," Carter hissed right back. "Allison said Zane's so drugged up that he won't wake up for at least another hour or two, and no one else is near enough to hear us. When are we going to discuss it if not now? You've been avoiding the rest of us, and we're worried about you. We're your friends!"

_What? She's avoiding them, too, not just me? Why?_ Zane held his breath, wondering how she'd react. Would she give Carter the cold shoulder, like she'd been doing to him? Or would she open up to the guy Zane labeled her closest friend? He could hear a familiar clicking sound – that would be Jo, agitatedly tapping one foot as she probably folded her arms and glared up at her former boss. He could just imagine Carter holding her gaze, the same way he'd seen them behave in confrontations dozens of times. Would she give in or walk away?

She finally sighed in resignation. "So they deputized you to do the dirty work, did they?"

"It's not dirty work when it's for a friend," he answered gently. "We know you're not doing as well as you'd like us to believe. We were just discussing this yesterday. No, don't give me that look, Josefina Lupo! When we first arrived here it was reasonable for you to spend so much overtime at GD, because you needed to master the job. But both Fargo and Allison say you have this facility running smoother than it's run in decades, and yet you're still spending almost all your time here. You can't just shut everything out."

"I'm not!" Jo retorted flatly, and then carefully lowered her voice again. "I'm just doing my job! You know how crazy this place and its nerds can be!"

"Yeah, I do," he agreed.

They were both silent for a long moment as a couple of the medical staff walked by. For a moment Zane worried that they'd leave, but as the footsteps faded Carter continued, "It's not just GD you're taking care of, Jo, and we all know it. You're bearing the brunt of responsibility for everyone else's safety. Don't roll your eyes at me like that. I know your training makes you the best person for the job. I have no doubt that your Ranger skills are going to come in handy dealing with whatever Beverly throws at us next. And it's all very well to live by the Ranger Creed – further, faster, harder, one hundred percent and then some, etc, etc; I get it, really I do. But this isn't a one-woman job. We're all in this together. You're not the only one at risk, and you don't have to bear the brunt of security all alone. We can each do our part."

Zane heard the swish of Jo's ponytail as she shook her head. "You all have more responsibilities than ever since we came here. You and Allison each have children that need to be a priority, as well as full time jobs. Henry has his relationship with Grace and town politics to manage, and we call on him for every potential disaster that happens on and off site. Fargo's hands are more than full with running GD's personnel and projects. Security is my job. I'm the only one who can focus on what needs to be done without raising questions. Until we're out of danger, that duty is the only thing that matters," Jo said in a tone that brooked no opposition.

"No." Carter refused to accept her conclusion. "Life is more than that. It has to be. Human beings need more," he said gently. "Jo, you were happy when you were with him. You're not happy now. You're closing yourself off from your friends and from your emotions. All you do is work. You've fine-tuned GD's defenses to the extent that a leaf can't fall without you knowing about it. You need to ease off, get some balance in your life. Even a Ranger needs a little R&R."

Confused, Zane frowned. He'd thought Jo Lupo had become _less _intimidating, friendlier and less black-and-white in her approach to being Chief of Security since Founder's Day, and yet Carter seemed to be saying she was actually _more_ security-oriented instead of less? And she'd made yet another reference to when they'd first come here… and what danger could Jo be protecting them from? Who was Carter talking about when he said she'd been happy "with him"? Was this related to the ring Jo had tossed at him not so long ago? She'd shrugged off his questions, but that kiss… Could Carter be talking about him and Jo, and what they'd been to one another? _What am I still missing?_

"I appreciate the sentiment, Carter," Jo answered, sounding like she was holding onto her patience by a thread. "But you don't know what you're talking about. Everything's fine."

He snorted. "Yeah, right! C'mon, Jo! Everything is definitely not fine. You're probably the strongest woman I know, but you can't keep shouldering this alone. As Grace reminded us yesterday, when Henry changed overnight she could barely function, she was so torn up. It can't be any different for you. She says that seeing him every day must break your heart. Something's going to give if you keep acting like nothing's wrong."

Zane wondered if his brain was scrambled worse than he'd feared. _Dr. Monroe's relationship with Deacon changed overnight? And what's with the talk about breaking Lupo's heart? Is that why she threw the ring at me, because there's someone she's fallen for? No, that doesn't make sense. I keep a pretty close eye on her, and she certainly doesn't act like she's pining for anyone, least of all me. This has to be the weirdest conversation I've ever… well… eavesdropped on._

"You're pressing your luck, Carter."

The tone of her voice sent chills down Zane's spine. _Ooh, she's really mad now. Carter better cut and run, or he's gonna get tased!_ He'd never heard Jo speak that way to the Sheriff before.

Carter sighed heavily. "Yeah, I know. And I know you could whip my butt for this. I don't care. Well, okay, I do care, and I'd really rather you not zap me with that taser. I'd also rather you not punch me," he added, probably in response to Jo's body language, which Zane could totally picture since he'd been on the receiving end of that exact tone way too often in the past. "The thing is, Jo, that I care more about you than I care about any retribution you may dish out."

Zane had to give the guy credit. It took guts to stand toe-to-toe with the Enforcer like this and keep talking.

"You still love him, and you still believe in him. You may tell yourself that he's not the same guy you fell in love with, but I've said all along that people are the same at the core, no matter what, and I think he proves it. Just because he has different memories doesn't mean he's not still the same guy. Every time we give this-Zane a chance, he comes through, just like other-Zane did."

Zane barely kept still. _"Other-Zane"? Wait – ME? He's saying it's breaking Jo's heart to see ME every day? That she loves ME and believes in ME?_ Startling as the sudden connection was, and ludicrous as it would have seemed not so long ago, it certainly rang true.

The truth. It hit Zane square in the solar plexis – the truth! Why hadn't he seen it before? By Jo's own admission, she'd told him _the truth_ last night. It was a measure of how foggy his brain must've been that he hadn't seen it at the time, or when she and Carter had first mentioned it as he was waking up here in the infirmary. It was definitely crystal clear now.

Josefina Lupo was smart – street smart, weapons smart, military smart, strategy smart – but she didn't know enough about science to judge whether Zane's conclusions last night were scientifically sound. The only way she could make sure he was cogent was if she only told him stories she already knew were true. She'd said so herself. She'd also admitted that she'd used the same gambit to gather information from him about Eureka, things that Grace Monroe didn't know because they happened before she'd come to town. Yes, Zane's verdict of truth or tall tale about those stories had told Jo whether he was able to think logically, but they'd also told Jo whether historic events had happened differently than… than what? What kind of event could cause the material, historic changes she and Carter – and apparently Henry and Fargo, too – were all tracking?

Risk. Carter said she'd taken a big risk by telling him the truth. If there'd been no tall tales in the series of stories she'd told him, if every one of them had really happened, then maybe Jo had already given him the answer. He quickly reviewed the scenarios she'd presented last night. Almost immediately he zeroed in on the one that solved the mystery.

Einstein's Bridge Device and the extra traveler that hitched a ride back from 1947 and changed the timeline. _Time travel! Oh crap! Protocols and sanctions!_ That single story that he'd dismissed so glibly as a tall tale made sense of everything else! Carter's worry about missing something he ought to know – because they were in a new, changed timeline! The weird job mix-ups in Jo's stories, those hadn't been a tactic to trip him up as he'd suspected, but simply the truth about circumstances in their original time line! That trip they were hiding, it was a trip back and forth through time!

Zane's breath caught as he was struck by another fact. The boyfriend she'd featured as a hero in several of her stories had to be other-Zane – _it was me! I was one of the good guys, and she really loved me – and I loved her! Holy cow – That's how she got hold of my grandmother's ring! That's why that kiss didn't feel like a first kiss!_

Last night he'd shrugged off the time travel story without a second thought, but now he knew better. It was the last piece of the puzzle. Einstein's old paraphernalia had been brought out of mothballs for Founder's Day. Somehow Einstein's Bridge must've been activated after his timeline's Lupo locked him up that morning and went for breakfast at Café Diem; but the Lupo who'd walked back in and said she'd marry him… She must've been the new Lupo. _Oh no! No wonder Jo's friends are worried about her!_ In retrospect, knowing what he now knew, Jo couldn't have realized the timeline was changed yet. She'd thought she was talking to her Zane, answering the proposal other-him must've made before the cell-phone users had been Bridged back to 1947.

It was all too easy to recall the stricken confusion that had flashed across her face at his sarcastic reply, before her expression had closed off. She'd quietly hunkered down at her old desk… which she hadn't known yet was her old desk… until he'd made that crack asking her to be human and let him out of the cell so he wouldn't miss his date. She must have been so confused… and so hurt! No wonder she was so often frustrated with him – and no wonder she kept trusting him despite his taunting and teasing. Zane shifted, uneasily wondering just how much like the other-him he was. For all he knew, this Jo could be privy to all his secrets!

Ooh! Maybe other-him had been privy to all of Jo's most intimate secrets!

No… better not to go there.

Zane jerked his focus back to time travel. Time travel! It made perfect sense; he rapidly connected the cause and effect. In Jo's stories, Eureka's mayor wasn't married; Zane remembered that when she'd told him about the biotech clone returning from space, she'd also mentioned that the woman the mayor loved had been killed in a lab explosion. That explained why Deacon's relationship with his wife had changed overnight. It meant either that Grace was the woman who'd died in their original timeline, or Deacon hadn't met and married Grace yet. It must've been freakish to come back from the past and find himself married.

And Grant! He had to be Einstein's partner, the man Jo said had hitched a ride back to the future with them and inadvertently changed the timeline! That explained the man's old-fashioned mannerisms and his fascination with Eureka's history. Historian indeed! They were lucky that his meddling hadn't turned time in on itself and – oh crap! When all those objects had appeared in Eureka from a half century ago, everyone has assumed it was a Section Five project gone awry, but it fit one of the theories about the inherent dangers of time travel, the two timelines converging, collapsing. Trees, old fighter jets, missiles, fuel drums – bullets! Zane's fists clenched as it occurred to him that it was Grant's fault Jo had ended up with that obscenely huge bullet in her chest. _I knew there was something fishy about that guy when he turned out to be the reason Fargo and Jo had me hack - _

Fargo – Director of GD now instead of being Allison Blake's assistant. If Fargo really was the accident-prone geek of Jo's stories in their original timeline, the guy was actually doing a pretty good job of adapting to his sudden rise to power. That certainly explained the weird posturing that had occurred right after Founder's Day. _Man, if I'd known then what I know now, it would've been fun to watch him stumbling into the role!_ And of course the change explained why Fargo had stood up for Zane during the whole TAP thing – he and Fargo must've been coworkers, maybe even friends! Although he couldn't see them as really close friends no matter what timeline they were in, Fargo probably trusted him because they'd once worked together instead of being constant antagonists.

Working relationships… in his own timeline Dr. Blake had transitioned from DOD Liaison to Medical Director when she'd found out she was pregnant with – what was the kid's name? Jenna? – because she'd made her family her priority. But in Jo's original timeline, Allison had been promoted to GD Director. That explained why Fargo, Deacon, Carter and Jo were prone to look to her for answers, why the doctor spoke so authoritatively about projects and protocols, and why the others accepted her word without question. She didn't seem to mind losing the high profile position when they'd come to this new timeline, though; she didn't hang around after hours like Fargo and Jo did. Instead she seemed content with a life that revolved around motherhood rather than her career. Of course she was a little over-clingy with her son; maybe she and Kevin hadn't gotten along where she'd come from?

It looked like Carter was the only one who'd jumped timelines without any major changes in his life. He'd come back to the same job, the same – _no, wait. That's not right. Carter broke up with Dr. Fontana fairly soon after Founder's Day. Maybe their relationship was different before? Jo never said anything about Sheriff Everyman being in a relationship, but she implied that he had a thing for Mama Doc. That has to be it; Carter and Red weren't together in their original timeline, and that's why Carter didn't let her railroad me over Tiny. _Carter was too honest a guy to carry on with Red when he was in love with Dr Blake, so he'd ended it. And his reminder to Jo a few minutes ago, that he believed people were the same at the core – that was why neither he nor Jo had been chasing him down every time something went wrong. They were both giving him the benefit of the doubt, because of the Zane they'd known.

That brought him back to Josefina Lupo again. Jo had loved other-Zane and believed in him, and because of that, she believed in him now. This Lupo treated him differently because she'd had an entirely different relationship with the Zane she'd known. The day he'd crashed the SkyCruiser she'd told him she thought he was a good guy underneath the attitude… Of course not long after that she'd also said that she'd been romanticizing them, that they were finished, and that they hadn't fit … but then less than twenty-four hours later she'd kissed him back, and wow! What a kiss! His body had known her, even if his brain had lost the memories.

Now that he knew, Zane couldn't believe he hadn't given time travel serious consideration before. The other theories he'd been building all involved alternate realities or parallel universes, scenarios where Jo and the others had somehow contrived to switch places with their 'twins', and it didn't matter whether it was done deliberately or accidentally. He'd just been consumed with the scientific question of _how_… until that kiss. The fact that Jo was in love with some doppelganger version of himself was purely incidental… until that kiss. He'd assumed that he reminded her of the man she'd lost, but that hadn't really bothered him. It was simply an interesting fact… until that kiss. That kiss was too familiar, too right, too real… so why didn't he remember a relationship that his body clearly recognized and that the ring proved had been true?

Suddenly the how hadn't seemed as important as the woman herself, and figuring out what they'd been to each other… and wondering if there was a chance they could be that way again.

And now that he knew Jo and the others had traveled back and forward in time – well, it wasn't some other Zane she'd loved: same timeline, same Zane. Like Carter had said to her a few minutes ago, people didn't change, only the circumstances of the timeline had changed. Einstein's Bridge Device was the missing piece of the puzzle he'd been searching for, the single item that gave him the full picture.

Josefina Lupo still loved other-Zane – and he _was_ other-Zane! She'd actually told him herself, although he hadn't understood it at the time. The most intriguing woman he'd ever met no longer regarded him as a felonious screw-up! Other-Lupo has scorned him… but according to Jo's stories last night, this Jo didn't just suspect that he had the potential to be more than he was, she'd seen it first hand and she'd liked what she'd seen.

Or had she been right that day she'd tossed the ring at him and said they didn't fit? Had she merely been romanticizing their relationship? Zane considered that for a moment, but based on the stories she'd told him, he didn't think so. She'd portrayed her boyfriend as heroic, yet she had spoken of him as if he was perfect. And it hadn't sounded boring. Some of the exploits had sounded like downright fun. He could totally do that, given half a chance. The question was, would she give him that chance? And did he want that chance?

He remembered the kiss again, the way she'd responded… their interactions since Founder's Day, her belief in him, her respect for his skills, her drop-dead gorgeous smile and the way her eyes had lit up the day she let him go and he stayed instead of running. If there was the slightest chance that he could have the kind of relationship she'd portrayed in her stories – and it sure sounded like the odds were way better than he'd have estimated before today – then no way would he pass on the opportunity!

Zane abruptly brought his attention back to the pair of law enforcement officers on the other side of the privacy screen. What had he missed? Apparently not much. Carter was saying that Grace had offered to talk to Jo about how she'd discovered that this-Henry was really not so different from other-Henry, and about how she'd fallen in love all over again as he learned to love her, too. "Hear her out, Jo; it could happen the same way for you and Zane," Carter concluded, "If you'd give him a chance."

Jo heaved an exasperated sigh, but still kept her voice down as she retorted, "We've talked about this already. It was the right thing for Henry to tell Grace because they were married and he had to live with her." Lowering her voice even further she added, "The DOD would never have believed Grace didn't know, so she was in danger anyway. Zoe, Kevin and Jenna are each directly affected by what happened and they have a right to know, but we protect them with our silence. Zane and I have no history here. He's safely out of the line of fire as long as he doesn't get involved. There's absolutely no justification for placing him in danger."

Zane's heart gave a jump, and he quickly schooled it back to its regular beat to avoid ending the conversation with a medical alert. Jo wasn't denying that she cared! In fact, she was implying that she cared so much that she was placing his safety above any possible relationship between them.

Zane caught the wisp of sound that heralded the sheriff's fingers rifling through his short hair again before he said softly, "I think you're wrong, Jo. I think you and he – other you and other him – did have a history here. It manifested differently, but I think Zane – this one, I mean – was as into other-you as our Zane was into you-you. You know what I mean," he said crossly, probably in response to her smirk at his effort at using clarifying pronouns. "I've seen Zane watching you, Jo, and I think he's head over heels crazy about _you_, and would court you if you'd give him half a chance."

That earned a snicker from the brunette. "You say that like it'd be a good thing! Even after almost two years and as crazy about him as I was, it still threw me when he proposed. No offense, Jack, but it's no different than Allison choosing Stark over you because of what they had in common. Smart goes for smart. I've always known that Zane would do the same sooner or later. You're the one that keeps insisting they're the same guy deep down, so the fact that this Zane is a horndog Lothario who's dated every halfway good-looking unmarried female egghead at GD proves it wasn't meant to be for him and me."

Her hard tone couldn't quite conceal the hurt beneath her sharp assessment, and Zane grimaced as he recalled how often she'd seen him openly flirting with other women. It was yet another reason for the new Jo to avoid him, of course. He certainly knew how to sabotage himself.

"That's only because the woman he wants won't give him the time of day. C'mon, Jo. You know you had the guy completely wrapped around your little finger, and you know he'd be at your feet here in the blink of an eye if you gave him a second chance," Carter chided softly. "Remember how happy you were when you were together, and how miserable you were when you hesitated to answer him?"

Jo couldn't argue either point, yet insisted, "It wouldn't turn out the same here. Other-Zane at least showed some admiration for me, for what I do, if not for what I believe. Yes, we had a lot of fun and being with him was… good. But it wasn't meant to be, and the universe saw fit to end it. This Zane," Jo paused and swallowed audibly. "This Zane is much harder, bitterer about his life, more scornful toward everything I value – in fact, he's ten times more irritating than he was when he drove me nuts before. Sure he flirts with me, but it's just what he does, Jack. He doesn't respect what I do, he doesn't know or care what I believe, and he's a security nightmare. If he really wants anything from me, it's only answers for his stupid puzzle. Besides, have you forgotten that Zoey thinks he walks on water? I love that kid. Even if I believed it might work out… I'd never try to poach her boyfriend."

Zane winced as that sunk in. He hadn't realized she was that close to Carter's daughter. Well, that was one explanation that hadn't occurred to him as to why she'd avoided being alone with him since he kissed her. Naturally he'd suspected that Jo didn't want to answer his questions, and he'd have bet money that she didn't want to admit to their mutual attraction. But it hadn't occurred to him that Zoe's infatuation with him could be an issue.

"It's a crush," Carter whispered. "It'll pass."

"You've been saying that for months. That's a pretty long crush. And even though he all but admitted he's humoring her to annoy you, the bottom line is that he hasn't hinted her off. Maybe he never will. She may not be an uber-genius like him, but she's close. She understands his work. He talks techno-babble to her without having to translate it. They swap ideas with the same ease with which you and I dissect a crime scene and discuss suspects. He respects her, Jack. They connect in ways he and I never could. She raves about him every time we talk. She's my little sister, Jack, and she deserves my loyalty. He could be happy with her, and he definitely makes her happy. Maybe they're meant to be, like you and Allison or Henry and Grace."

"She's too young for him!"

"Their age difference won't matter in a few years, and you know it." Jo's tone was firm and final. "I had a life before Zane, you know. I'll be – "

"Fine," he finished for her, not at all happy about it. "I know. I'm still telling you that he's the same guy who bought you all that lingerie, bought himself a real suit and took you to a dozen ballets in Portland, met you at the church every Sunday to walk you to brunch at Café Diem, convinced you to hide in a closet and make out with him while you were supposed to be chaperoning a bunch of teenagers, spent the better part of two years alternately dating you, fighting with you and making up with you, and then freaked you out by proposing to you on bended knee. I still say you two are meant to be together."

"You're an old softie, Jack," Jo replied gently. "And a good friend. Now go talk to Allison. She's been maintaining a discreet distance for a while now. Zane should be waking up soon; I need to put these clothes into the cubicle for him and get back to work."

Zane forced his body to relax, as if he were still asleep, as he heard her heels click toward the edge of the screen. By the time she rounded the corner and stepped softly to Zane's bedside, he could hear Carter's heavier footsteps crossing the lab, melding into the other muted sounds of the infirmary. He listened as the beside table's drawer opened, heard the rustle of cloth as Jo inserted whatever clean clothes she'd brought for him.

She was still for a moment. Then he felt the lightest brush of her fingers just below the bandage Allison had placed on the contusion at his brow. Oh yeah, she cared!

It was all Zane could do to lay still and relaxed, controlling his breathing. He'd rather be jumping and turning cartwheels through the infirmary! Josefina Lupo wasn't unattainable after all! If she'd included the possibility as one of her stories, he'd have labeled it a tall tale. Wrapping his brain around this one was going to take some getting used to.

His eavesdropping had proven far more valuable than merely providing a scientific answer to the conundrum he'd been struggling with for months now. He'd learned significant details that would help him court the Enforcer. She liked ballet. She went to church every week. Apparently she liked kissing him. And she thought she wasn't smart enough for him. Hmmm, never would've guessed she was insecure about the difference in their IQs. He'd also never suspected that she didn't know how much he respected her both as a person and for the skill with which she performed her job.

And then there was Zoey Carter. That should've been a non-issue by now. He'd already talked to the teenager about keeping their friendship exactly that, a friendship. Yet it appeared that neither Carter nor Jo had been enlightened. Zoey was just feisty and mischievous enough to keep it to herself purely to rile her dad, and of course she wouldn't tell Jo because Jo would be bound to tell Carter and spoil the fun she was having with her dad. Zane would have to talk to her again. Maybe if he pretended the sheriff was taking it out on him, Zoey would relent and tell them her innocent romance with Zane had ended peacefully.

On second thought, no, he'd better not. She was her father's daughter, and she'd suss out the truth. He'd better be at least minimally honest with the girl; she deserved that much… and besides, he was turning over a new leaf, right? No, not turning over a new leaf: he was becoming the man he could be, the man he already was behind the façade he'd adapted to protect himself from rejection – the man Jo saw in him. He'd been an ass to her, so it wasn't going to be easy to convince her that Carter was right.

This Ranger Creed thing, now, he was definitely going to have to research that. It had come up more than once. That would be the first thing he checked out as soon as he could reasonably "wake up" and reach for the data pad in the rucksack Jo had handed over before his surgery.


	4. Part 4 Turning the Page

**Tall Tales Part IV – Turning the Page**

Disclaimer and Author Note: _See Part 1_

_*****Eureka***Eureka***Eureka***Eureka***Eureka***Part IV**_

It wasn't difficult to find; Wikipedia included a page about the Creed of the Army Rangers. Zane read it through carefully, once and then again a second time, followed by a third time through, slowly. With his eidetic memory, the extra readings weren't really necessary, but he wanted to burn it into his psyche. Each repetition clarified another facet of who Jo was and why she was so good at what she did.

_**Ranger Creed**_

_** R**ecognizing that I volunteered as a Ranger, fully knowing the hazards of my chosen profession, I will always endeavor to uphold the prestige, honor, and high esprit de corps of my Ranger Regiment._

_** A**cknowledging the fact that a Ranger is a more elite soldier who arrives at the cutting edge of battle by land, sea, or air, I accept the fact that as a Ranger my country expects me to move further, faster and fight harder than any other soldier._

_** N**ever shall I fail my comrades. I will always keep myself mentally alert, physically strong and morally straight and I will shoulder more than my share of the task whatever it may be, one-hundred-percent and then some._

_** G**allantly will I show the world that I am a specially selected and well-trained soldier. My courtesy to superior officers, neatness of dress and care of equipment shall set the example for others to follow._

_** E**nergetically will I meet the enemies of my country. I shall defeat them on the field of battle for I am better trained and will fight with all my might. Surrender is not a Ranger word. I will never leave a fallen comrade to fall into the hands of the enemy and under no circumstances will I ever embarrass my country._

_** R**eadily will I display the intestinal fortitude required to fight on to the Ranger objective and complete the mission though I be the lone survivor._

The Ranger Creed might be a bit gung-ho for his tastes, but Zane liked the values it espoused. He'd known Jo came from a military family – much to his relief, his mental fuzziness was gone and he once again had full recall of the un-redacted details from her personnel file, which, as she'd assumed, he'd hacked into long ago – and since she and her brothers had all followed in their father's footsteps, her adherence to a "serve and protect" philosophy of law enforcement was predictable.

This Creed, though, it took the Lupo family's patriotic dedication to a much higher level. For the first time he understood the frustration experienced by both his original Lupo and the new Lupo over his casual disobedience and disdain of rules and authority. Looking back, he could see that the Lupo of the timeline he'd lived had interpreted his pranks and teasing as his making a mockery of everything she'd devoted her life to, and his track record with his current Lupo wasn't much better. If he could judge by what Jo had said to Carter about other-Zane, it seemed likely that he hadn't gotten it right in her original timeline, either.

That had to change: he needed to find ways to show his appreciation, to support her devotion to her job and ideals, and to prove he could be an asset instead of a liability in her effort to shield them from the DOD time travel protocols. As a rule, Zane refused to explain or defend himself to anyone, or to conform to the expectations of any of the communities where he'd briefly lived. But he'd do it if that's what it took to earn a chance with the reserved beauty he'd been getting to know since Founder's Day. Winning Jo was worth the effort. Besides, he liked the growing sense of belonging with this group of accidental time travelers. They'd already given him a large measure of their trust, and it felt right.

Decision made, initial research complete, Zane didn't waste any time getting started on a plan of action. His fingers flew busily across his data pad as he absently ate the lunch placed on his bed tray by a nurse. His attention remained wholly focused on the device all afternoon. He steadily worked through an outline of issues and tactics to deal with each potential problem. By the time Dr. Blake released him early that evening, he'd already initialized the first three steps of his strategy and he'd laid the groundwork for another half dozen ideas.

After he'd changed to the fresh clothing Jo had brought that morning, he limped straight to her office. He knocked once and walked in – no need to make her suspicious over a sudden complete change in his use of manners. "Hey, JoJo; I was hoping you would still be here."

She looked up from the stack of paperwork she was reviewing, and gave him a swift once-over. "You look better than the last time I saw you," she said lightly. "What can I do for you, Zane?"

"Nothing. I just wanted to thank you for organizing a search so promptly, and for going above and beyond the call of duty to look after me last night."

Her brows lofted at his sincerity, and she leaned back to study him more carefully. "You're welcome. Are you headed home now?"

"Soon. I want to check on a couple things in my lab before I leave. See you tomorrow?" He waited long enough for her to nod, and then turned away.

He actually closed the door quietly behind him. Jo blinked and stared at the door. Okay, that was… a bit odd. She keyed in her security code and watched on the monitors as he headed toward the Commercial Lab, favoring his leg but otherwise behaving as normal.

She'd better keep an eye on him for the next few days, just in case this was the calm before a Donovan mischief storm. It had been a while since he'd provoked any outrage from his coworkers. Up until now Jo had attributed it to how busy he was with his new lab, but anything could happen if he was distracted or restless due to his injury. He hadn't seemed out of sorts, though… just… polite? Yeah, that would've qualified as weird even if he was other-Zane. She'd definitely watch him.

Her decision wasn't difficult to carry out, because Zane quickly became impossible to miss.

The next morning when she met Carter at Café Diem for coffee before work, he cheerfully relayed the news that he'd received an unexpected phone call from his daughter. "You won't believe this, but she and Lucas have been back together since the fall," he said, actually smiling at the concept. "Her ongoing interest in Zane was only a smokescreen while she tested the waters of a cross-Atlantic relationship! Can you believe that?" She hadn't thought it mattered since Zane was only playing the field, but she'd realized that she needed to come clean – here Carter glanced pointedly at his former deputy – now that he'd told Zoe he was looking to date one woman exclusively.

Jo shrugged as if it didn't matter to her one way or another. "I'm glad you're finally willing to give Lucas a chance," was all she said.

All the way to GD she reviewed the various women he'd been dating, wondering which one had actually caught his genuine interest and steeling herself to run across him with whoever it was. Not quite ready to face that prospect, she slipped in through one of the back halls and made it safely to her office.

She opened the door and stopped in her tracks for a moment, and then warily circled the desk, eying the single red rose lying on the gleaming surface.

The long-stemmed blossom was de-thorned, but garden fresh with dew still on its petals and leaves. There was no card, no note… She eased into her chair and carefully picked it up, raising it to inhale the delicate fragrance. It was lovely. Jo laid it to one side on her desk, cued up the security feeds and reviewed the last hour's coverage of her door.

Nothing. No sign of anyone entering or leaving her office, yet the rose must've been left only minutes before or the dew would've evaporated.

It had to be Zane.

Jo frowned, pushed her chair back, and stood to march straight down to his lab and demand to know what the snarky horndog was up to this time. Before she could carry through, though, an alarm was triggered and instantly Jo was off and running to check out a potential lab contamination on Level Two. Overseeing the cleanup and the safety of the lab's team segued into the normal security routines, and it was well into the afternoon before she was able to return to her office. By then, sadly, the rose had wilted. Jo slumped into her chair and sighed. It was the story of her life, she decided, reaching over to trace her index finger over one of the silky petals.

"Hey JoJo, is everything okay?" came his familiar drawl from the doorway.

She jumped a little, caught off guard, and scowled at him.

He held up a hand, palm out, to forestall the irate words on the tip of her tongue. "Sorry. I didn't mean to startle you. I was just passing by, noticed you sitting there, and wanted to see if there was anything I can do to brighten your day."

She blinked at his conciliatory tone and the genuine concern in his blue eyes, and instead of snapping at him she found herself gesturing to the rose. "I think you already brightened my day."

Eyes twinkling, he teased, "I know at least a dozen guys who think you're the hottest babe at GD. What makes you think the rose came from me?"

She rolled her eyes, lips curving upwards. "It was left without any record on the security feeds. Who else would it be other than you?"

"Ah. Yeah, that makes sense." He winced and rubbed his jaw. "Sorry. Force of habit." He shoved his hands into his pockets and rocked back on his heels as he glanced from the drooping blossom to her. "Maybe you'd prefer a different type of flower?"

Jo realized he was wondering if she'd deliberately ignored it instead of placing it in water. "No, I love roses. I just didn't have a chance to find a vase before the first alert today."

He looked relieved. "That's good. I mean, it's good that you like roses, not good that you didn't have a chance to – well, you know what I meant," he concluded sheepishly, flushing as she grinned. He backed toward to door, deciding he'd embarrassed himself enough for one day. "I'm, uh, gonna get going. See you tomorrow, JoJo."

She was left staring at the quietly-closed doorway again, her amusement banished by the realization that Zane's gift was an irrefutable sign that he wanted a different relationship with her, something more like the one she'd lost when Einstein's Bridge Device had activated and changed their lives. That meant she must be the one he'd told Zoey he wanted to date exclusively. Part of her was relieved that she wouldn't have to watch him with someone else, thrilled that he would make such a declaration, and aroused at the mere hint that she might get to be with him again.

Fortunately, the rational part of her knew better and tamped down the illogical emotions before she let herself get comfortable with what couldn't be permitted. He had no idea what he'd be letting himself in for, but she had the full picture. Zane was bound to be disappointed when she refused to play along. He'd have to get over it. She couldn't allow herself to forget what was at stake. If and when the DOD stumbled over their trip to the past, she had no intention of there being any reason for them to sanction Zane, too.

It wasn't like she'd be breaking his heart by denying them the chance to see what might develop; even though she'd inadvertently changed this timeline by treating Zane with a leniency and respect that other-Jo hadn't, that could be explained by the way Zane had proven himself when given opportunities. Up until now, his heart was in no danger and he was still safe from the DOD. He'd stay safe as long as the changes didn't go any further than that.

She could discount Zoey's report about him wanting to have an exclusive relationship, because this Zane was a player. While he might consider trying to add her to his string of girlfriends after her foolish and self-indulgent response to his kiss, it was more probable that he'd decided dating her was the most likely way he'd get an answer about why his grandmother's ring had been in her possession.

Zane could be amazingly persistent about an unsolved scientific puzzle. If she maintained her distance, sooner or later a more immediate project would claim his attention… and sooner or later his eye would be caught by another woman. He'd fall back into flirting and playing the rogue bad-boy bachelor. No matter how much she missed him, holding herself aloof was the right thing to do.

Still, she couldn't help staring wistfully at the rose. It was nice to know that there might have been a chance for them, at least for a little while, if not for the fact that she was the one best suited to shoulder the responsibility for guarding their secrets. Things happened for a reason. Her classified file in this timeline cited her adherence to the Ranger Creed as a major factor in her promotion from civilian law enforcement to GD's Enforcer, and that same dedication to duty was their best line of defense now. The safety of nine other people depended on her vigilance, ten when she included Zane.

A good workout in her dojo served to steady her resolve that night, with the added benefit of wearing her out enough that she was able to sleep.

Unfortunately, knowing she couldn't be with this Zane didn't prevent her heart from leaping when she found another rose on her desk the following morning – this one already in a vase.

Jo sighed and rubbed her forehead as she realized she was smiling at the new token from Zane. Why did he have to be so doggone charming? Just to make sure she wasn't jumping to conclusions here, she checked the security feed.

Yup, it was from Zane again. Today he'd deliberately ensured that the security cameras recorded his jaunty stroll down the hall to her office, and he'd smirked directly into the camera in the corner and given it a snappy if somewhat sloppy salute before he carefully placed the vase on the front center of her desk. Then he'd waggled his brows at the camera before sauntering out again.

He was _infuriating_! Could the man do nothing without the snarky attitude?

Her cell phone rang, and she glared at the flower as she answered sharply, "Lupo."

"Get up here – NOW!"

Terrific. Fargo in panic mode. Jo headed up to his office, wondering what had gone wrong this time. She was definitely getting a headache.

The pain didn't get any better when Carter called "Hold the elevator" as it paused at ground level to let off and take on passengers. Although they ignored one another as the elevator resumed its upward trajectory to the mezzanine level, the two law officers stepped out shoulder to shoulder when the doors opened again. The pounding in Jo's head morphed into a migraine as they saw Allison hurrying to join them outside the Director's office. The trio exchanged guarded frowns; this was shaping up to be a time travel issue.

Jack and Jo each automatically checked their sidearm and, with a nod to one another, they entered and split left and right, Allison waiting on the threshold for their okay.

Fargo had the window blinds closed, and stood pale and tight-lipped behind his desk. Henry was already there, waiting with his arms folded over his chest.

And Zane was leaning against the far wall.

Carter motioned Allison to enter, and followed her to the chairs at Fargo's desk. "Sonic?" he asked, eyeing Zane.

"Already engaged," Fargo said, his voice a good octave higher than usual.

Jo stayed near the door with a feeling of foreboding, glaring at the handsome scientist on the opposite side of the room. He must have figured it out, or they wouldn't all be here.

"So what's this all about?" Allison gently asked Fargo, calm and collected despite the obvious.

He nervously shoved his glasses back into place, jerked his head toward Zane and said, "He added two and two together and came up with five time travelers."

Henry took a step forward. "Those exact words?" he asked sharply.

"Of course not," Zane scoffed before Fargo could reply. "That would've triggered all kinds of red flags with whoever was monitoring the listening devices at the DOD. I have no intention of blowing the whistle on anyone. My exact request was for the Director to gather each of you so we could discuss the Bridge."

The bridge. To a casual listener that could refer to any one of a dozen structures in or around Eureka. But coupled with Zane's specific request for each of them to be present, they all knew he was talking about Einstein's Bridge Device. Fargo was holding it together, but his nostrils were flaring, his breathing was shallow, and his eyes were roving nervously from friend to friend – avoiding Zane, the possible harbinger of their doom.

"And 'fyi'," Zane added reassuringly, "I do have a project involving a new upgrade to the GD bridge holographics, something that's high-tech, top-secret and new enough to justify the use of sonic protocols and the involvement of scientific, security, and medical personnel. That will account for your presence and for the use of sonic protocols, so no one's in any trouble here."

"He said he wouldn't say any more until you were all here." Fargo anxiously pushed his glasses up his nose, looking apprehensively between Allison, Carter and Henry.

"Okay, we're here," Carter said, facing Zane. "You have the floor."

Zane straightened up, very aware of Jo poised tensely across the room. He might only get one shot at this. He faced the group with as much sincerity as he could muster. "Thanks. Look, I know you have plenty of reason not to trust me. I don't know if I'd have trusted me either, before Founder's Day. But I'm not exactly a fan of the whole big brother establishment mentality, so I don't think I'd have turned you in even before. I might've toyed with the knowledge for my own amusement, maybe even tried a little time travel myself. But my perspective has changed since you all showed up." He hesitated and his gaze flickered to Jo. He wasn't surprised that she didn't react outwardly; she'd be the toughest one to win over, and at least she was hearing him out. That was a good thing, right?

She met his gaze, but her expression remained tautly controlled.

He looked right at her as he continued, "I have no intention of reporting you to the DOD. And let me be perfectly clear that my silence isn't conditional on what I can get in return." A nerve twitched on her jaw, but otherwise, nothing. Zane reluctantly switched his gaze to the others. "From what I've been able to piece together, you guys didn't travel into the past on purpose. You don't deserve whatever sanctions some neurotic bureaucrat might levy. You've got kids," he met Carter's eyes first, then Allison's, "And a spouse," he nodded to Henry, "And last I heard, a girlfriend that would fall under suspicion, too." He eyed Fargo before addressing the group as a whole again. "The paranoid, power-hungry war-mongers that impose sanctions wouldn't worry about whether your loved ones knew anything or not; they'd imprison them, examine them, interrogate them… In short, you guys are livin' on the edge."

"No argument there," Jack muttered, resting his hands on his hips as he listened.

"The fact that Grant is out wandering the world is both good and bad. It's good because he's not here to draw attention to you, or to be used by people like Beverly Barlowe – remind me to ask later about the history with her, because I have a theory but it doesn't fit all the parameters, so I think I'm missing detail that may be pertinent. Back to Grant: his being out there is bad because it's a pretty big challenge to keep tabs on him, to watch his back, and to make sure he doesn't say or do anything that leaves you vulnerable. I know the guy was Einstein's partner, so he's gotta be a frickin' genius, but he's a little out of his century. If he gets caught, it wouldn't take much to link him right back to Eureka."

"He'll be careful," Allison said with absolute assurance. "He's well aware that his choices have serious consequences."

Zane noted the dark look exchanged by the other three men, and took it as confirmation that good ole Dr. Old Spice's joy-trip to the future had been responsible for more than just that bullet in Jo's chest. "Yeah, yeah… the road to hell is paved with good intentions," he said with a curled lip. "We can argue that later. The bottom line is, I want to join your team." He waited while they exchanged glances again. Interesting; they didn't seem surprised. Of course, from everything he'd learned so far – mostly from Jo's stories – other-him would've done the same. He risked a glance at Jo and found that she hadn't moved an inch. Straightening his broad shoulders, he scanned the others again. "I'm an expert at living on the edge, and I can contribute. I already have several working designs for setting up a "red flag" system of our own to alert us if someone does any suspicious digging." He pulled his PDA from his pocket as he took a long step toward the desk and extended it to Fargo, who was, after all, the official head of the team as Director of GD.

Deacon and Allison circled around the desk to look over the younger man's shoulder as he scrolled through Zane's drafted ideas. Carter's eyes followed Allison, and then watched the interplay between the trio as they read through whatever Zane had presented. He shook his head in amusement as he saw all three faces light up with what he called science-geek enthusiasm. Must be good stuff. Apparently Zane still knew how to win friends and influence people.

As soon as Zane handed over his tablet, Jo turned away and stared out the window between the blinds, not really seeing the scientists, lab workers and security personnel passing through the atrium below. She had no doubt that whatever Zane offered would be helpful. That had never been an issue. Her mind was whirling over the possible implications of Zane knowing everything. This was her worst fear coming true; he was now in the line of fire with the rest of them, vulnerable to time travel protocol sanctions. He was such an adrenalin junky that he'd undoubtedly thrive on the danger of, as he'd put it, living on the edge. Now it was even more vital that she not fail. He was another life she was directly responsible for, and it scared her… it scared the daylights out of her, more so than even that Ranger mission that had blown up in their faces so badly that only three of them lived through it.

It was a few minutes before she managed to martial her thoughts and emotions. When she turned back, Jack was stoically watching Zane, who was stoically watching the other three scientists evaluating his schematics. Not that there was any question, given the thrilled smile on Henry's face, Fargo's wide-eyed wonder and Allison's fascinated attention, but she asked coolly, "You think his ideas have merit?"

Fargo looked up with grudging admiration and nodded. "Yeah, with these gadgets he's designed we can keep tabs on Grant and maybe warn him if anyone else is keeping tabs on him, and we'd have much better odds of locating Beverly, too." He glanced from Henry to Allison and, at their nods, he said firmly, "I'm going to authorize Zane to undertake the projects."

Jo nodded crisply. She'd expected it. "Just remember that Zane's still under probation, so we'll have to make certain he's covered for anything remotely close to crossing the line, or General Mansfield will be all over him."

"Good point," Fargo nodded, and started tapping notes into his own PDA.

"There's something else we need to consider," Allison warned. "GD contracts allow a great deal more latitude than standard corporations regarding intellectual and proprietary rights to ideas and designs created by its employees, whether during or after hours. But the contracts do stipulate that employees must report such developments. If we get caught using unregistered tech, there will be penalties."

Zane, instead of being annoyed or outraged, chuckled. Everyone looked at him, and he nonchalantly admitted, "That won't be a problem. Everything I've suggested is based on patented gear I've been using since long before I came here. I've had both the materials and conceptual plans registered for about ten years or so."

The other three scientists looked skeptical. "Zane, it's not likely that innovative concepts like this could slip by unnoticed," Henry frowned.

The younger scientist smirked, blue eyes twinkling, and waggled his brows at them. "Well," he drawled, "the Patent Office may not actually realize this stuff is registered… I filed through a back door, so they'd have to know where to look."

Everyone blinked. Then Allison dropped her head to hide a smile, Fargo looked intrigued, Henry gave a bark of laughter, and Carter groaned, "Don't say stuff like that in front of me, Zane!"

He shrugged, unrepentant. "Sorry." His gaze strayed to Jo, who was still standing apart from everyone else. Now that he had the tacit approval of the others, surely she'd agree as well. "What do you say, Lupo? Can I play, too?" he asked cheerfully.

Jaw clenched, Jo stalked across the room and shoved Zane back against the wall, hard. "This isn't a game, Donovan!" she snarled, glaring up at him as she held him there with a hand pressed against his chest.

Probably not a good time to tell her how hot she was, he decided. But apparently she read it in his expression anyway, or maybe she felt the surge in his heart rate, because he saw the blush that tinted her cheeks and felt the pressure of her hand ease away.

Her anger vanished as suddenly as it had appeared, and she glanced sideways, swallowed, and then met his gaze again and repeated much more softly, "It's not a game, Zane."

He settled his hand over hers where it now rested a little more lightly against his sternum. "I know, JoJo. Believe me, I take your safety very seriously."

Her breath caught at the slight emphasis he'd placed on the word 'your', and her lips parted slightly as she stared up at him. "M-my safety?"

He shrugged, his thumb rubbing softly over her knuckles. "Well, y'know" he nodded his head toward the others without taking his gaze from her. "Theirs too, of course. But mostly yours, JoJo. I'm… I'm a little crazy about you, you know."

They both heard Fargo grumble, "Oh great! They're gonna go all mushy again!" and Allison shushing him.

Jo's blush deepened, but her lips curved upward a little. "You pick the weirdest places," she muttered to him under her breath.

His grin widened. "Sorry. I'll try to do better." Then he took a deep breath and looked straight into her gorgeous brown eyes; everything was riding on whether he could sway her now. "I can be an asset to the team. You have the kick-ass discipline and the totally hot brawn, I have the corner on scientific creativity and the geek-slash-nerd qualifications. You and me, JoJo, we're stronger together than we are alone. I can work with you to keep everyone safe. We just need to meet in the middle."

Her eyes glistened, but the tears didn't spill over. Jo gave him one last shove for good measure before she pulled her hand from beneath his. "You're a snarky jerk, Donovan," she said huskily before she turned away from him, cleared her throat, and faced her amused friends. "If the sonic protocols are on much longer, someone will start wondering. Let's break this up."

If there was a bit of extra swing to her hips as she strolled out, and if Zane couldn't take his eyes off her, well… everyone knew better than to comment on it. If he seriously wanted to win her, the ball was definitely in his court.

There was another single red rose on her desk the next day… and the next… and the next.

The fourth day, after resolving a half dozen minor crises and completing two formal reports on major explosions to turn in to General Mansfield, Jo came home to find a dozen Liza's Lingerie boxes on her doorstep. She was unsure whether to be insulted or pleased that the boxes were accompanied by a hand-written gift card: "In admiration of your inner and outer beauty – Z"

The next Monday her daily rose was accompanied by a beautifully framed calligraphy rendering of the Ranger Creed that had been mounted on her office wall. When she tasked Carter with prompting Zane with ideas, the sheriff denied any involvement. She couldn't seem to track down her elusive suitor to rant at him that morning, but at the end of the day – after her immediate suspicion and ire had cooled – he poked his head through her office door and asked if she'd like to grab dinner at Vincent's with him. Jo cautiously agreed… and when she met him there he kept her laughing at seemingly endless accounts of comical mishaps as his lab team attempted to adapt GD discoveries for commercial uses. After they'd finished their meal he let her pay her own tab without objection, but he walked her out to her car and thanked her for joining him.

A couple days later he made the rounds of the time travel group and traded their cell phones for ones he'd modified with what he called a 'scrambler chip'. "You have the same phone numbers, of course, but I designed and built the extra chips myself, so there's no chance of any spyware or outside influence; they're totally secure. If you need to talk to each other off the grid when you're nowhere near an office with sonic protocols, press the asterisk key twice. The chip will activate and act as a scrambler signal to ensure private conversation, whether you're calling another cell phone equipped with the chip or not." He went on to explain, "Only the person you dialed will be able to clearly hear you. Also, it's a smart chip, so if the receiving phone is bugged – say, Kevin's or Zoey's – this little fella will short the bug. It'll also cause enough white noise to distort the sound on any recordings." He grinned apologetically at Carter as he explained that the new scrambler chips were an upgrade of a simpler version that he'd used in his cell phones for years now, for privacy when he talked to his family about where he was and what he was doing.

The group quickly discovered that the luxury of being able to talk to one another without fear of being overheard made their lives much less stressful. The others each made a point of thanking Zane in Jo's presence, clearly in support of his effort to prove he would be an asset to the team.

Zane and Jo were both startled the first time it happened; Grace and Henry walked up to their table at Café Diem and Grace hugged Zane as Henry thanked him with twinkling eyes. Carter managed to catch Zane in her full view right outside her office the next day; that was when Jo realized her friend's motive, and she stuck her tongue out at him behind Zane's back and wondered when the next well-meaning conspirator would strike. Zane caught on a few hours later when Allison spotted him while she was walking down a GD hall with Jo; without the least attempt at subtlety she interrupted their review of a schedule for staff physicals and dragged Jo along to Zane's side to express her gratitude. And at the end of the day Fargo rushed up to them as Zane was walking Jo to her car, and gushed so much that Zane shoved his hands in his pockets and retreated uncomfortably, leaving Jo laughing and Fargo blinking in confusion.

Worried that their obviously-orchestrated and well-meaning interference wouldn't go over well with Lupo, he found himself knocking nervously on the door of her house that evening. Jo opened the door, startled to find him on her doorstep fidgeting nervously with his keys. "We okay?" he asked sheepishly.

Her lips curved upward and her dark eyes sparkled in amusement. "Yeah."

"Okay. Good. That's good. See you tomorrow," he shoved the keys and his hands into his pockets as he backed away, nodding – and tripped off the edge of the sidewalk. After keeping his balance by sheer luck and a lot of wild arm waving, he staggered back onto the pavement and risked a red-faced glance at the doorway.

Jo was valiantly suppressing her laughter, posture casual as she leaned on her door jamb watching him.

"Yeah. Going now," he jerked a thumb over his shoulder, turned and fled to his waiting motorcycle.

Every time he saw her for the next couple days Zane turned as red as the roses he left her each morning. She graciously pretended she didn't notice. Once he realized she wasn't going to tease him about his momentary clumsiness, he finally relaxed.

She was amazing. This whole thing was amazing! Who'd have guessed this was what he'd been missing all this time? The relationship she'd told him about through those tall tales… he was actually starting to live it, and he abso-frickin-lutely liked where it was going.


	5. Part 5 Happily Ever After

**Tall Tales Part 5 – Happily Ever After**

Disclaimer & Author note: _See Part 1_

_*****Eureka***Eureka***Eureka***Eureka***Eureka*** Part V**_

It didn't take long for Eureka's denizens to grow accustomed to seeing Zane and Jo share a meal when he was neither cuffed nor behind bars, and for word to make the rounds about the Enforcer's daily roses. Vincent's buzzed with a rash of bets about when and if Donovan would actually make his move, and whether Lupo would tase him for it. With their history in the current timeline, no one considered the possibility that Zane and Jo's new relationship might be long-term until Director Fargo himself casually asked Vince what the odds were for an engagement in less than six months.

Once Vincent and the others close enough to hear the question had picked their jaws up off the floor, people started taking it more seriously. The concept of GD's Enforcer in a serious romantic relationship with GD's most prolific perpetrator of misdemeanors fascinated Eureka's entire population.

By the end of that week, Fargo found himself in complete sympathy with Sheriff Carter when the lanky lawman slumped onto the stool beside him at Vincent's and huffed that the majority of his calls were no more than thinly-veiled attempts to pump him for information about his former deputy and Zane.

"I know what you mean. I don't think there's a single department head that hasn't trumped up some excuse to see me so they can also happen to mention the odd development between our Enforcer and our Delinquent," Fargo grumbled darkly.

But their mutual exasperation faded when Zane opened the door and Jo breezed through, chatting over her shoulder at him with her dark eyes dancing. The self-proclaimed ladies' man followed, grinning at whatever she was talking about. The pair looked so happy that Carter and Fargo found themselves smiling, too. They exchanged resigned sighs, both well aware that they'd gladly keep right on fielding questions from the townsfolk if it meant Jo was back with Zane.

Of course, Zane and Jo were aware of the gossip, but they ignored it. Zane had his own agenda, and as long as Jo wasn't kicking him to the curb, he was sticking with it.

He initiated the next level in Project Win Jo as he was fixing a glitch from a security feed with the woman in question watching over his shoulder; very casually he mentioned that he was looking for someone to paintball with him. "I don't suppose you'd care to join me for a little friendly competition, would you JoJo?" When that broad smile that he so loved spread across her face, he knew he'd struck gold. This would be worth it, even if she ground him into the dust.

They spent that Saturday afternoon ducking and weaving across a nearby mountainside and spattering half the tree trunks and shrubbery in the forest with eco-friendly color in their attempt to land hits on one another. He'd known she was intensely competitive, and, given her marksmanship skills and military training, he'd fully expected to lose – which he did, of course, although not as badly as he'd feared, which was particularly surprising considering that he spent most of the day wholly bemused.

Jo Lupo was a wonder to behold in this environment, laughing and joking with him as they dashed from cover to cover, more relaxed than he'd ever seen her when they called a break and collapsed to the ground to refresh themselves with snacks and drinks. She clearly loved the outdoors and the physical activity. It didn't take much prompting to start her reminiscing about playing games like this with her brothers, about growing up camping and hiking and generally keeping up with – or surpassing – everything her brothers did, including joining the Army.

"Yeah, with all that practice it's no wonder you're so good at this," he acknowledged. "You're really whooping my butt here, Jo. I don't think I stand a chance of ever winning a round in this game."

"No you don't," she agreed complacently, although her tawny eyes twinkled merrily.

To his delight, she teased him about using predictable tactics and challenged him to think outside the box, like he did with applications for scientific principles. Her vibrant personality and beauty literally stole his breath… even while he was being pelted with paintballs after they resumed their game and she proved that his 'outside the box' tactics didn't work any better than the predictable ones had.

For her part, Jo was agreeably surprised to discover that although this Zane was a little edgier, his tactics and skills were pretty much the same, and he was still a gracious loser. Granted, she'd gone a little easy on him this first time out, but she soaked up his easy acceptance of the fact that she was more than his equal at the game. There wasn't a hint of the chagrin she'd feared. Instead his open admiration of her skill sent her spirits soaring. Naturally he flirted with her every chance he got, but that, too, had its charm, as did the fact that he was genuinely interested in her family. The banter they exchanged, combined with the fresh air and the physical release of the game, made the day more fun than she'd had since the time change.

As they stowed the paintball gear at the end of the afternoon, she impulsively turned to him and asked, "Hey, you want to come back to my place for a little _Call of Duty_ and some dinner?"

Then she realized what she'd just suggested. She froze and paled. Having him in her home was way more intimate than paintball; was she really ready for that? She gnawed at her lower lip and looked anywhere but at him, frantically wishing she could take it back.

Zane saw her panicked expression, recognized it for what it was, and gallantly let her off the hook. "Actually, maybe we could do that another evening? You hit me quite a few times, and I need to go home and clean up." He gestured ruefully down at his paint-splattered jumpsuit.

She met his good-natured gaze, and her dread melted away. "Thanks, Zane."

He shrugged and brushed his knuckles over her cheek. "This was fun. Will you give me a rematch next weekend? Now that I've seen some of your moves, I'd like a chance to try again."

Relieved that he wasn't pushing – and well aware that she'd had the advantage of knowing how he was likely to act and react since she'd gone paintballing with other-Zane dozens of times – Jo agreed. As he'd said, it was fun, and free from any of the historically-mixed-signals that flavored their relationship at GD. Besides, he was being really generous to her in this new relationship that was developing, behaving like a gentleman. Since that day in Fargo's office when he'd 'joined the team', he hadn't asked again about his grandmother's ring or said the dreaded words, "We need to talk." She owed him something for that.

Zane watched her drive away, disappointed that he'd given up the invitation, but encouraged that at least she'd been comfortable enough with him to make the offer. That was a step in the right direction. Moreover, he knew he'd scored points for giving her space. He hadn't forgotten what she'd said in the Sheriff's Office on Founder's Day, about sometimes over-thinking things. So he gave her time to think through whether she might really be comfortable enough with him now to invite him over.

Zane tried not to worry as he caught her watching him with a thoughtful expression several times over the next few days. Patience wasn't his strong suite, but he was glad he'd kept his mouth shut when Jo bumped her shoulder into his as he walked her back to her car the next Saturday after another rousing afternoon of paintballing. "Wanna come over tomorrow night after dinner to play x-box?"

Just as off-handedly, he nodded. "Sure. I should have all the paint out of my hair by then."

Jo laughed and called him a big baby… and it was all he could do to _not_ kiss her then and there, her broad smile and sparkling eyes were so… hot.

He was on her doorstep the next night at exactly the time she'd specified, and they both had a good time. He inspected her entertainment center before they played, comparing notes with her on what they liked and disliked about the various games and game platforms. He found that they appeared to share similar preferences – well, he found out for the first time, and based on Jo's occasionally relieved reactions, she confirmed that his tastes weren't really different from other-Zane's. He didn't begrudge her such questions; it hadn't taken him long to catch on to her discreet fishing about topics like books and music during their conversations over meals shared at Vincent's. So far he didn't think she'd found any substantial differences between him and his other version, and he hadn't called her on it. After all, he was doing the same thing, although to a lesser extent since he'd not known Lupo as well.

So everything was going smoothly until Zane handily won a round after losing the first time through. He shouldn't have won this round either. For an instant he considered simply accepting it. But maybe this was the opening he'd been looking for, a chance to move them a step closer to one another. He took a deep breath and hoped this wasn't a mistake as he set aside the game controller. "You're so hot at both strategy and marksmanship, I have no idea how I managed to score more than you. You know, my ego can take getting beat by a girl, Jo, especially when she's got your skills."

She nodded, a self-conscious smile flitting across her face. _Busted!_ "Okay. I'll keep that in mind."

"Shouldn't you know that already?" he asked, leaning back on her sofa and studying her, watching for any sign that she would shy away. "Am I really that different from him?"

It was the first time he'd spoken openly about their different time lines. Jo hesitated, looking down as she quickly assessed the situation. There was no DOD surveillance in her home, and Fargo had designed an independent AI similar to S.A.R.A.H. to keep it that way for her. Zane was here tonight because she'd done a lot of soul searching; she'd never stopped loving Zane, and this guy might've been the twin of the man who'd loved her once. This was a conversation they needed to have. Stalling for a little more time to gather her thoughts, she shrugged and asked, "Am I really that different from her?"

Okay, turn about was fair play. "Yes… and no."

Startled by his prompt reply, she quirked a brow.

Zane scrunched his nose. "It's hard, y'know? I keep seeing glimpses of her in you, but then you're very different in other ways. Going strictly on empirical evidence, you're the same person. But -"

Jo had blinked at hearing him express almost exactly the same thing about her that she'd once said to Carter about him. But it was the second sentence that caught her attention. He spoke with such certainty that Jo held up a hand, interrupting him. "What do you mean, empirical evidence says I'm the same person?"

It was such an obvious thing that he was taken aback. But he refrained from his instinctive "Duh!" as he remembered that the difference in their IQs was one of the things that concerned her. The science was complicated, so he'd need to use an example she'd understand. After a moment's thought, he came up with the perfect story to highlight the essential principles involved, just like she'd done with her version of tall tales. "Okay, so you know Deacon and Fargo filled me in on the basic events since the Bridge took you back and forth." She nodded. "Okay, remember after Barlowe framed me and stole the DED to rebuild the Bridge Device? Both Carter and Grant ended up back in 1947 trying to save Allison's life, but when they got stuck there Carter remembered the magnetic tape you and he had listened to at GD in our current timeline, and the Carter in '47 changed the recording to tell you and this-time him how to save Allison."

Jo nodded; it had been beyond freaky, even in Eureka, to hear Carter's voice on the old magnetic tape saying he was back in the past again when he was standing right there beside her.

"After you heard the message and this-Carter crashed through the cloaking field and stopped this-Grant from going back, it fixed the disrupted timeline. Carter and Grant who were stuck in '47 merged back into their future selves, wearing the clothes from '47 and with their full memories intact." Zane paused, and she nodded again; so far so good. "That happened because they're not different people. Grant is the same Grant he was in '47 before he came forward with you guys on Founder's Day, the same 2010 Grant that was fooled by Barlowe into going back, and the same Grant who merged with his 2010 self after you and Carter acted on that old taped message and righted the timeline to correct what Barlowe messed up. Same goes for Carter. The timeline changed, but the people who traveled didn't. They just have extra memories. Does that make sense?"

Jo nodded slowly and carefully restated it. "I think so. Grant changed our historic development when he Bridged back to 2010 with us on Founder's Day, and me and the others merged with your present-day us but with our memories, not the memories from the timeline that we didn't actually experience."

"Right. So you remember the me that didn't time travel with you, but I only knew the you from the changed timeline that played out after Grant disappeared from 1947." Zane smiled a little sadly. "Same people, slightly different memories."

She frowned, thinking it through.

Zane continued regretfully, "I don't know what I did different in your original timeline that allowed you and me to get beyond a superficial relationship. There are so many variables that we'll probably never know exactly what caused the differences."

"But my Zane isn't still somewhere out there in time and space?" Jo asked quietly, head down, plucking at the material of her slacks. She already knew the answer. She'd slowly reasoned it out after it had felt the same when Zane kissed her, but she needed to hear it from someone who truly understood. "You're him? Even though you're a little different?"

"That's right. There's only ever been one of me and one of you. I am your Zane."

Jo swallowed hard. There was one more facet of this time mess that she needed him to confirm for her. Her voice cracking, she peered up at him from beneath her lashes and asked, "So I'm not cheating on my Zane by l-l- y'know, liking you so much?"

His breath caught and his heart leapt. He knew what she'd almost said. She loved him! Not just the Zane she'd known, but _him_! "No," he promised huskily. "You're exactly the same awesome Jo _liking_ the same really lucky Zane who's abso-frickin-lutely _liking_ you right back."

A small smile curved her lips. "So it's okay to kiss you?"

Zane smirked. "Anytime and anywhere, sweetheart."

Jo launched herself across the sofa and into his ready arms.

He'd thought the kiss in the sheriff's office felt right; now it was beyond belief how perfectly she met his passion with her own. They could've lost themselves in this pleasure all night if they hadn't needed to break for air. Now that she was convinced, Jo dropped her guard completely and responded so openly to his kisses and caresses that Zane was dazzled. Yet that same openness revealed the vulnerability he'd frequently sensed in her since Founder's Day, reminding him of her insecurities. Other-him may have been oblivious to her fears, but he knew better. Those concerns were why she'd said "like" instead of "love". She might be kissing him half-senseless, but she still had doubts about whether they had a real future together.

She needed to know that he saw her as next-to-perfect, despite differing IQs, beliefs, or job objectives. That, he knew, wasn't going to happen overnight. He'd already made a subtle start; time now to be more blatant so there was no question in her mind about where he stood.

It took considerable will-power on Zane's part to stick to his goal in the face of the tantalizing taste of what it could be like between them. Jo was all soft feminine curves and hot alluring sweetness beneath his lips and hands, and it was very, very tempting to take it further. Fortunately, she was willing to follow his lead. He could only hope she wouldn't think he was rejecting her.

But far from seeming worried or hurt when he eased back their petting in favor of cuddling her close, she sighed and snuggled in contentment. "I've missed this," she whispered. "I think maybe I took it too much for granted, before."

Apparently other-Zane had found simply holding her to be as satisfying as he was discovering it to be – and she clearly relished it. He rested his chin on the top of her head as they each caught their breath, and gently rubbed her back. "It's so nice being with you, I'm really glad you like it, too. You know, if you'd told me that night in the crevice that I'd have the privilege of curling up on a sofa with you like this, I'd have considered it to be one of your tall tales." He paused, enjoying the feel of her chuckle against his chest. "Of course that was before I realized your tall tales were all true. That was really clever, you know."

Jo tilted her face up to confirm that his expression was as approving as his tone implied. "Yeah?"

"Yeah."

Jo smiled and tucked her head back into the crook of his neck and shoulder again. "Thanks."

This was only going to work if she knew she could trust him to be honest with her. Here came the hard part. "I might never have given it a second thought if I hadn't overheard you and Carter talking about it as I was waking up in the infirmary."

She tensed as she instantly recalled the topic foremost on their minds that day, and was completely mortified by the realization that her single careless conversation with Jack in an unsecured location had handed the truth to Zane on a silver platter. There was some excuse for Carter, but with her special ops training such a lapse was unforgivable!

As if he hadn't noticed the rising anxiety of the woman in his arms, he continued admiringly, "You had me completely flummoxed. I mean, I always knew you were smart, but -"

Jo blinked and leaned back enough to stare up into his face, startled out of fretting over her culpability by his unexpected words. "What? _Smart?_ _Me?_"

He infused sincerity into his voice and expression as he met her wide-eyed disbelief. "Come on, JoJo, it shouldn't come as any surprise to you that I think you're smart. I know you know that I've hacked your file," he waggled his brows at her as she simply stared at him, mystified. Good, he'd pulled her attention away from blaming herself. "It's not just anyone that can lead a tactical team with as good a record as the one accumulated by your Ranger squad while you were with them, and it takes immense time and study to be able to quote both the civil law code and GD's massive regulations to me the way you have over the last few years – and that doesn't even take into consideration the awesome number of weapons and armament on which you've racked up expertise, or how intuitive you are about people and situations. Nah, the powers-that-be sure wouldn't have recruited you to work in Eureka if you weren't at the top of your field. I knew you were gonna keep me on my toes from the first day we met."

Jo mulled that over, scanning his earnest expression as he continued, "Anyway, as I was saying: I always knew you were smart, but using stories the way you did, that was a stroke of genius. It never occurred to me that you were telling me the truth the whole time and I honestly don't know if I'd have figured it out on my own any time soon."

Utterly bewildered by this turn of events, Jo frowned. "Really?"

"Really. And I'm impressed almost as much by your storytelling as I am by the fact that you put one over on me. You're really good, Jo. And just in case you didn't know this already – really good storytellers are really _hot_."

Now that she understood. "You think anything in a skirt is hot," she scoffed almost instinctively.

"Maybe once upon a time," he admitted, tongue in cheek. Jo groaned at the fiction reference, and he laughed even as he braced for the next round. "So, did the other me not like being beat at x-box, or were you just testing the waters to see if a – now, how did you put it? You said… I'm much harder, bitterer about my life, more scornful toward everything you value, and ten times more irritating than other-me was."

Stricken, Jo struggled away from him but he tightened his arms around her and held her in place. "Easy, JoJo," he added at the all-too-familiar narrowing of her eyes and clenching of her jaw. "Please don't kick my ass until you've heard me out!"

She could have done it. He knew she could. But she'd have had to hurt him. He knew that, too. He was banking on the fact that she wasn't desperate enough to escape him that she'd be willing to hurt him – at least, not yet.

She folded her arms over her chest, leaned as far back in his arms as he'd allow, and glared at him.

Not terrific, but he'd take it. "See, I don't know for sure what I was like before, so I don't know if you let me win just now because other-me was a poor sport, or if you were checking to see if I'm a sexist jerk like I've given you every reason to believe." He shrugged. "There's a lot of stuff I don't know about you and me, and maybe some of it is stuff I'll never know. But there are two things I definitely know about you and me, Josephina Lupo. The first is that I loved you with all my heart when I gave you that ring and asked you to marry me, and I fully intend to ask you again one day soon."

Jo pressed a hand to her mouth and choked back a sob, her eyes once more glistening with tears.

"And the second thing I know is why you hesitated the day I asked you to marry me – and it has nothing whatsoever to do with whether or not you and I fit." His finger over her lips stilled whatever she might have said. "Don't interrupt. I'm not done," he chastised mildly. She swallowed and waited. "That's my girl," he approved with a lopsided grin. "See, I know we _do_ fit. We're right together. Like I said in Fargo's office, you and I are stronger together than we are apart."

"Alone," she whispered against his finger. At his quirked brow, she repeated a little stronger, "Alone. You said we're stronger together than we are _alone_, not apart."

She was right! Zane couldn't resist kissing her again, beyond tickled that what he'd said had meant enough to her that she'd remembered it word for word. She kissed him back, of course, like she had every time, and probably always would. He might have continued to kiss her indefinitely if he hadn't tasted the salt of tears.

He withdrew slowly, wiped away the tears trickling down her cheeks, and rested his forehead against hers for a moment as she gathered her composure and they each caught their breath. "Jo…" his voice cracked, and he had to clear his throat before he could continue. "Jo, it was my fault you hesitated."

"What? No, no you're wrong!" She shook her head, her ponytail flying with her urgent need to absolve him. "You were amazing! It was amazing! Any girl would've been so lucky to have a guy go all out like you did, setting up our very first meeting and recreating the whole thing with the lingerie box and -"

Once again he stopped her with a forefinger to her lips. "Okay, I'm like _this_ close to letting you finish that so I can find out what a lingerie box has to do with my proposal," he said, and hesitated a moment before he decided he'd better stick with getting back on track. "But you're missing the point here, Lupo. I don't think the proposal itself was the problem. You told Carter that I didn't respect what you do, what you believe, in essence, the very things that make you who you are. And I can see how you would think that, given my propensity for flaunting the rules."

"Oh, is that what you call it?" she couldn't resist saying.

He rolled his eyes. "Bottom line," he said firmly, making sure he was meeting her keen gaze, "There are a few things I've never told you, and based on what you said to Carter, I don't think other-me did either. Jo, I'm not just attracted to you because I find almost everything you do incredibly hot, or because you're so beautiful. That might have been what I saw at first… but the longer I've known you, the more impressed I've been with you. With _you_," he repeated, touching her chest over her heart, "And _you_," he touched her forehead. "For instance, I know you go to church every Sunday if there's no crisis-of-the-day to prevent it. I know in my time I spouted off the standard narrow-minded scientist crap about it being stupid, before I found out Lupo was a church-goer, so maybe your timeline Zane did, too?"

Jo nodded slowly, wondering where he was going with this.

"I know there are a lot of people who tend to look down on, y'know, most religious stuff… But the argument about it being foolish to believe in what you can't see is ridiculous. No one's actually witnessed evolution or the Big Bang, but plenty of scientists believe in those theories. It's a matter of what you choose to believe. Logically speaking, intelligent design is more likely than chaos theory. Just because there's no tangible evidence that God exists doesn't mean He doesn't. I mean, that's why it's called faith, right?" Her expression had shifted from puzzlement to surprise to dawning appreciation. "I'm not offering to go to church with you," he cautioned, "But I know church is important to you, and I really respect that you stand up for what you believe in, particularly when you live in a town full of skeptics."

She smiled at him like he'd just handed her the moon. "Okay."

He couldn't resist indulging in another kiss, which of course led to a few more kisses. But there was more that needed to be said, so he reluctantly resisted the urge to deepen their petting and, sure now that she would neither make a run for it nor flatten him, he eased her off his lap to sit beside him with his arm around her shoulders. "You doing okay?" he quizzed gently, scanning her flushed and contented countenance.

"Yeah," she nodded, once again assimilating what he'd told her now that he wasn't assaulting her senses. "So… you don't think it's stupid to believe in God?"

"Absolutely not," he promptly confirmed. "And I'm really sorry for not making sure you knew that before I asked you to marry me the first time."

Jo caught her breath. _The first time!_

Unaware of the blissful hope his word choice had set off, he continued, "I'm also sorry for ever giving you cause to think I didn't respect what you do. The career choices you've made involve complicated and dangerous work, JoJo, in fields were only men have traditionally excelled. But you're incredibly good at all of it. Like I said before, you constantly amaze me with everything from your mastery of combat techniques and weaponry to your knowledge of legal codes and investigative methods to your phenomenal grasp of security factors. I couldn't give my Lupo a tactical advantage over me by letting her know I thought she was so good at her job, but I don't see how I could've dated you for as long as I did in your time without blurting out how utterly cool it is that you're so… so… so hot!" He frowned as she burst out laughing. "Uh, that didn't come out quite like I meant it to," he muttered.

Still chuckling, Jo pressed a kiss to his jaw. "Maybe that's why I didn't realize you respected my work. I didn't make the connection back then, but you did say 'hot' quite often in the other timeline," she smiled.

He ran a hand through his hair, still disgruntled. "Yeah, well, maybe. But with my IQ you'd think I could find a better word to use than 'hot' to let you know that I think you're perfect."

She stilled, staring at him for a long moment before she shifted to straddle his lap, wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her soft full lips to his in blatant, loving invitation.

Well! Zane had no idea what he'd just said, but apparently it had meant something special to Jo. He decided he'd made all the points that needed to be made, and kissed her back. Odds were looking pretty good that he and Jo were going to enjoy their very own storybook ending.


End file.
